Always a Step Behind
by rainafire
Summary: Danielle escaped from Woodbury and made it to the prison, hoping to find a safer place. Her motives seem pure but Daryl didn't fully trust her. Still, sometimes it's better to keep your potential enemies close. Daryl/O.C.-Rated M for Non-Con triggers (Not by Daryl of course!), Language, Violence & random smuttiness *Still WIP*
1. Escape from Woodbury

**A/N All characters belong to the writers and creators of The Walking Dead. Except those that arose from my own twisted imagination.**

**Chapter One: Escape from Woodbury**

They didn't realize they had lied to the wrong girl. The things that they had made her do…the Governor, Dr Milton, that scumbag Merle and his sadistic henchmen. They lied to her, told her they were helping her daughter. They were supposed to be giving her antibiotics. It was just pneumonia; it was simple enough to cure. But instead, that sick bastard Governor had used her to see how the biter virus evolved in children. He had lied to Danielle, forced himself on her in exchange for the sugar water he assured her has really penicillin. Allowed Merle, Cash, Tripp and the other scum to abuse her, all the while knowing that idiot Milton wasn't doing jack shit to help her little girl.

Thankfully, Danielle was a good listener and remembered everything. It was during the times when she was shackled to the bed in Merle's house, trying to ignore the fact that Cash, Tripp or one of the others was taking his turn sweating on top of her by listening to Merle and the others talk in the kitchen, she learned about the prison. That there were other survivors out there, Merle's brother being one of them. Being good with a bow and fast with a knife, Danielle was on the team that ran out for supply runs. She planned on taking that opportunity to get herself and her Abigail out of Woodbury and heading straight for the prison. Maybe those people would be able to help them.

Then Abigail died, reanimated and the first thing the Governor did was have Merle take her to Milton so he could experiment on her. They put her little girl in a cage, pulled her teeth and treated her like a god damned lab rat. That night was the night Merle forced her to her knees in front of him and she finally fought back. She grabbed her hidden weapon bag, the one she stole from the armory, and ran. She hit the woods and headed in the direction of the prison. Merle and his crew had cleaned out the majority of the biters from the immediate area and it would take a while for Merle to get the strength to alert that she was gone. She ran hard, her breathing ragged, for a full hour before the adrenaline wore out and she collapsed to the ground. Hearing the shambling in the distance, she pulled herself up into the tree to hide from the biters moving in. She stayed there all night, sleeping some but mostly waiting for dawn to come so she could see and run again. She didn't allow herself to cry.

* * *

Glenn and Maggie were on watch in the tower. Since escaping Woodbury, Glen refused to let Maggie out of his sight. She said she was ok but what the Governor had done to her had obviously traumatized her. She shivered all night, even though the hot Georgia summer was on them and the prison wasn't exactly air conditioned.

Glenn looked out over the grounds. A few more walkers were heading out of the woods towards the prison fence and there would soon be enough to have to deal with them again. It was easier to take them all out as a group than dealing with them piece meal. Daryl had come up with that idea. All they had to do was get them close to the fence and walk the line to take them out. Saved on arrows and ammo. Plus, it was less noisy than the gun.

"Glenn, I'm going downstairs to let Axel and Oscar know they need to walk the fence again," Maggie started out the door but Glen grabbed her hand.

"I'll go with you." She squeezed his hand and shook her head.

"I'm a big girl Glenn. Someone has to be up here to keep watch. I'll be right back, ok? I promise." She kissed him and left the tower control room. He watched the door for a moment before turning back to the window. There were a lot of walkers today. They were growing in numbers. Hershel said that they were probably being forced out of the big cities and spreading out. As he watched the woods on the south field, he saw something odd. He grabbed his binoculars for a closer look. A woman, not a walker but an actual woman, was stumbling out of the woods. She limped but appeared to try to run while holding tightly to her black backpack. The walkers hadn't noticed her yet but they would. Glenn ran down the stairs and into the cell block. Rick was sitting in one of the cells with baby Judith. Carol was playing cards with Carl, Beth and Hershel. Daryl sat up on the landing, cleaning one of his guns. All of them looked up when Glenn ran in.

"There's someone coming!" Rick laid the baby down on the bed and picked up his shotgun. Daryl grabbed his cross bow and ran down the stairs. They followed Glenn out of the cellblock, locking the door behind them.

"How many?" Rick asked.

"Just the one. A woman. She ran out of the woods and was trying to head this way but she wasn't moving too fast." Daryl snorted in amusement.

"Probably dead by now. Those walkers'll be all over her in a second." The three men saw that Maggie, Axel and Oscar were already at the fence, herding the walkers to them and stabbing them in the head one by one.

"Do you see anyone alive out there?" Rick asked as he joined them. Axel nodded, stabbed another walker and pointed.

"They're over there. I think they're laying down in the grass but I'm not sure." Daryl looked and saw a body on the ground, crawling towards the prison, dragging a black bag. He wasn't that keen on having another person join them but he didn't want to stand by and watch someone get eaten alive either. He ran to his motorcycle, started it and revved the engine.

"Cover me!" He called to Rick. Glenn ran to the gate to open it and Daryl roared out to the field towards the figure. A few of the walkers turned towards the sound of the engine but Daryl hardly noticed them. When he got closer, the woman slowly got to her feet. He stopped the bike next to her and she climbed on, still clutching her bag. She put one arm around his waist and collapsed on his back.

"Hang on!" He yelled over the engine and raced back towards the prison gate. Once they were back inside and the gate was secured, both Glenn and Daryl helped the woman off the bike. Her eyes were closed, her lips dry and her skin was sunburned. She had several fresh bruises on her face and what looked like a handprint on her upper arm. Her clothes were torn. Glenn took her backpack as Daryl picked her up. At first glance, she didn't appear to be bit. The scratches were probably from the brush but she would have to be secured first.

"Don't take her to the cellblock," Rick warned as he followed them back. "Put her in one of the cells in the hall until we know who she is." Glenn ran ahead with Maggie.

"I'll get Hershel!" Rick whistled and Maggie turned to catch the keys to the cellblock. Axel and Oscar followed closely behind Rick and Daryl.

"Is she gonna make it?" Axel asked, worried. Rick glanced down at her and shook his head.

"I don't know. She needs water, that's for sure." Oscar nodded.

"I'll get it. We'll bring it with the doc." He opened the door to the prison and Daryl carried her inside. They headed towards one of the nearest cells and he laid her on the cot. She hadn't moved since he picked her up. Rick turned towards the sound of Herschel arriving with Oscar and both Rick and Daryl backed out of the cell. Axel hung back, a worried look on his face.

"Is she bit?" Hershel quickly checked her over and shook his head.

"She's not been bit but she needs water. She's severely dehydrated." Oscar handed him a cup and Hershel held the woman's head up and poured water in her mouth. Her lips moved and her eyelids fluttered but she didn't swallow. He tried again and this time, she lowered her head to the cup, sipping at the water. She sat up suddenly, eyes opened wide and grabbed Hershel's arm. Both Daryl and Rick made a move to restrain her but Hershel waved them back.

"She's alright." To the woman, Hershel patted her hand and helped her take another drink.

"It's ok. You're fine now. Just don't drink too fast." He let her take the cup and she quickly drank it.

"Can I have more please?" Her voice was parched and her lips barely moved. Hershel took the cup from her and handed it to Oscar who left to get more water. The woman laid back on the cot, watching the men warily. Hershel rose slowly, leaning on his crutch. He backed out of the cell. Oscar returned with more water and she sat up to take the cup from him. Once again, she quickly drained the cup and handed it back to Oscar.

"Thank you." She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand and looked at her surroundings.

"Did I make it?" Rick frowned.

"Make it where? Where were you heading?"

"The prison. They said in Woodbury that people cleared the prison." She looked dazed but Daryl quickly drew his gun.

"You're from Woodbury? What…did that Governor send you here?" She turned and focused first on the gun and then on Daryl. She shook her head.

"I escaped. That place, the people running it, it's fake. It's not a safe haven." Daryl lowered the gun slightly and frowned.

"We know that. We got two of our people out of there but no one else seemed fixed on leaving." Rick raised his hand.

"First things first alright? What's your name?"

"Danielle. Danielle Robertson." Rick entered the cell and kneeled in front of her.

"Why did you decide to come here?" She glared at him.

"How about instead of the interrogation, we finish with the introductions?" Her voice was hoarse but forceful. "I've had enough of men ordering me around, forcing me to do what they want and I'm not putting up with that shit any longer. If you want the story, I'll tell it but I want names." She rose slowly, keeping one hand on the cell wall to steady herself. Rick backed out of the cell to give her room.

"Ok, that's fair. I'm Rick Grimes." He motioned to Hershel. "This is Hershel Greene," he nodded behind him, "That's Axel and Oscar." Oscar was stone faced but Axel raised his hand and offered a slight smile. Danielle jerked her chin towards Daryl.

"Who are you Mountain Man?" Rick suppressed a grin as Daryl stepped forward gun lowered but still drawn.

"Daryl Dixon." Danielle's eyes widened and she stood taller.

"Merle's brother. He said you were here."


	2. Danielle's Story

**A/N All characters belong to the writers and creators of The Walking Dead. Except those that arose from my own twisted imagination.**

**Chapter Two-Danielle's Story**

Daryl's eyes narrowed.

"How did you know Merle?" Danielle ignored the question and looked over at Hershel.

"Can I get more water please? When I bugged out, I could only grab the weapons bag. My food and water weren't handy." Oscar answered before Hershel.

"I'll get it. You want somethin' to eat too?" She nodded.

"Thank you. I appreciate it." Oscar nodded, turned and walked down the hall. Danielle looked up at Daryl. She smirked.

"You know you don't look like Merle at all. I'd never have known it if you hadn't said your last name. He only called you his baby brother. The way he talked about you, I figured you for a kid." Daryl holstered his gun.

"I ain't no kid." Danielle started to laugh which turned into a cough. She sat down on the cot and started dry heaving. Hershel moved as quickly as he could to sit next to her, patting her on the back.

"You're going to have to take it easy. When was the last time you ate or drank anything?" Danielle spit on the floor of the cell and rested her elbows on her knees. She started laughing again.

"My mother would have a shit fit if she saw me right now. Sitting here, surrounded by men and not a ladylike bone in my body. My daddy now…he'd be proud. He used to call me his Huckle Mary Finn." She spit again. "I've been in those woods for about two, maybe three nights. I got lost when I had to circle back to get around a pack of biters and I wanted to throw off my trail in case Merle and his boys decided to follow me and take me back." She shuddered. Oscar returned with a bowl of stew and a canteen of water. She took both gratefully. She ate a spoonful and frowned, glancing up at Oscar.

"It's squirrel. Daryl keeps us well stocked up on meat but it takes some getting' used to if you ain't already." Danielle smiled and drank from the canteen.

"I thought it tasted familiar. I haven't had squirrel since my daddy died. That's been a good twenty years." She glanced again at Daryl. "Thanks. It's good." Hershel patted her on the back again.

"You just eat slow. No sense in it coming right back up again." She set the bowl down on the floor, took another drink from the canteen and slowly got back to her feet.

"Do y'all mind if we go outside? I understand if you don't want me around your people but I can't sit in here. I have a thing about small places." Rick and Daryl exchanged a look. Both men stood aside as she walked out of the cell. She stumbled and Daryl caught her arm, keeping her on her feet. She looked up at him, for the first time looking him square in the eye. He didn't like that. When people did that, he always felt defensive, like they were challenging him. He let go of her arm and let her walk in front of him. Rick led the way back out into the yard. Danielle blinked in the Georgia sunlight and turned her head away from the brightness. She followed Rick over to the large picnic table they had dragged from the exercise yard to the shade. She sat down across from Rick and Hershel. Oscar and Axel kept walking towards the fence where Glenn and Maggie were taking out another group of walkers. Daryl wasn't about to sit. He didn't trust her and felt more comfortable on his feet. Rick watched her for a moment and then shrugged his shoulders.

"Well, now you've eaten. You've drank something and we've gotten introduced. So, why don't you tell us what happened." Danielle glanced up at Daryl, then at the two men sitting across from her. Instinct told her that it was fine but she was still uneasy. If Daryl was anything like Merle or if this Rick was like the Governor, she may have jumped from the frying pan straight into the fire. She bit her lip and looked down at the table. Everything that had happened over the past two weeks was racing through her head and she didn't know where to start.

"Right after everything started to go bad I decided that Abigail, my nine year old, and I needed to get out of Atlanta. My ex-husband wasn't too happy that I was violating the divorce agreement and taking her out of the city but I told him to try and push it through the courts while the world was going to hell. I thought we could head west. My daddy's family is from around Monroe Louisiana and my mother's originally from Mississippi so I figured I'd try to make it back there," she paused for a moment and took another sip from the canteen.

"We'd waited too long to get out. Interstate 20 was blocked off with all the traffic and the people leaving the city. What got me was the number of people trying to get in. I decided to head south to see if I could get on one of the state highways and cut around. I got on 85 and had almost a clear shot but there was so much chaos and road blocks, we just kept getting pushed south. Abigail and I stayed with a few different camps, the ones with families, and we all just kept heading south along 85, moving camp every few weeks or so whenever the biters moved in too close. Someone said they heard from a CB call to another camp that the army had set up a safe zone in Macon for the winter so we turned east. That's how we ended up in Woodbury." She paused and took another drink from the canteen.

"When we first got there, it was nice. The Governor seemed like a nice enough guy and everyone really worked together to keep the place safe. I forget how many months we were there because we just seemed like one big family. Once they learned I was a pretty good shot with a bow and could handle a gun, they had me on the crew to run supplies in. We'd raid the cars on the road, houses, stores…whatever we could find and bring it back. It wasn't that bad of a deal. Sure we had the biters to deal with but they couldn't get into the town. Abigail was going back to school, had a few friends and I started to think that we could actually make it." Tears started to well up in her eyes and she wiped them away with the heel of her hand. Rick nodded at her when she appeared to regain her composure.

"If you felt so safe, what made it so bad that you had to leave?" Danielle's eyes flashed with anger and her face flamed red.

"Last month, Abigail got sick. We thought it was just a cold but there was a doctor there who said he heard fluid in her lungs and she needed antibiotics because it could be pneumonia. The only meds available were kept under lock and key by the Governor. I know now it was just another way of keeping us all dependent on him. I went to him and asked for penicillin for my little girl. He came to see her with this scientist, Milton, who everyone said was studying the biter virus to find a cure. After talking to Abigail and then to Milton, he said he'd be more than happy to give Abigail the medicine…for a price." She looked at all three men. Daryl shook his head in disgust.

"He made you pay on your back didn't he? Son of a bitch." He hit Rick's shoulder. "See, I told you we shoulda killed him! When we got Maggie and Glenn and we knew what he'd done to them, I told you that bastard had to die! But you were more worried about getting back here then you were doing what needed to get done." Rick didn't turn towards Daryl but raised his hand.

"Michonne told us he was too well guarded. It would have been a bloodbath and we were needed here. We barely got out as it is and we've been watching the roads for an ambush ever since." Daryl kicked at the dirt.

"That's a bullshit cop out and you know it. We got into Woodbury, grabbed Glenn and Maggie and only two people saw us!" He stopped when he saw Danielle glaring at him.

"What? You got something to say?"

"Yeah. You're welcome." She stood and walked slowly over to Daryl, glaring at him. "The reason why you were able to get in and out so quick without raising the alarm is because that night, your brother and his little gang were having a little party in his house and I was the favor." Daryl flinched but didn't look away. When he spoke, it was barely above a whisper.

"You're a liar. My brother ain't no rapist." Danielle moved closer, her fists clenched and both appeared to be squaring off to fight the other. Rick stood and put his hand on Danielle's arm. She jerked her arm away and he raised both hands.

"C'mon. Let's sit back down and finish this, ok? We just need to know what happened and know what's next." Danielle and Daryl kept glaring at each other, neither one backing down until Danielle turned her back on him and went back to her seat. Rick glanced up at Daryl who stood there thoroughly pissed off, shaking his head in disbelief. Danielle continued.

"That day was when I found out that what Milton and the Governor had planned and what they were doing to my daughter. For five days, she had been taking her medicine and she only seemed to be getting worse. I knew that there was another camp at the prison. We had talked about scoping the place out but were told it was too dangerous. I thought maybe I could take Abigail to you all and you might be able to help her. I even went so far as to get my weapons bag from the armory, the one I used for supply runs. I even packed another bag with some food and a few bottles of water. Then I asked the doctor if he could check on Abigail to see if she was strong enough to move. When he came over and saw her, that's when he looked at the medicine. He said it wasn't penicillin. He tasted it and said he was pretty sure that what Milton was giving my daughter was sugar water mixed with Pepto Bismol to make it look like the antibiotic. As he was leaving, Milton and the Governor arrived to check on Abigail. I confronted them with the medicine and Milton said what a great sacrifice I was making for the good of all mankind. That by allowing them to study her after she had died and turned, I was going to help them find a cure." She paused to steady her voice and tried to compose herself.

"The doctor tried to leave the house but the Governor had Merle, Cash, Tripp and two of the other leg breakers waiting outside. I think Merle slit the doctor's throat. By that time, Abigail was running such a high fever that she was delirious. Milton said he was going to watch her and that they would call me back when it was time so I could say goodbye. I told him I wasn't going anywhere and that's when Merle and his boys grabbed me, and dragged me out the back door. The Governor told them to keep me quiet for a few days, that it would be over soon. Cash took that as an opportunity to have his turn. And then Tripp. And then two of the others. I was just trying to block it out, like I did when I had to make my 'payments' to the Governor when I heard yelling. Merle came in and pulled whoever it was off of me and I honestly thought for one moment that he was going to put a stop to it but that wasn't why. He was screaming at all of them, telling them that while they were playing grab-ass, you all had waltzed in under their noses and made off with the prisoners. He was railing about the prison and that he just knew his baby brother wouldn't betray him like that. Then they left to go track you down and left me there. I think I passed out because when I came to, I was dressed and back in my living room. Milton was there and told me that it was time." Her voice hitched a bit and the tears started back. She clenched her jaw and shook her head.

"I walked…upstairs. The Governor was sitting next to my daughter's bed, holding…her hand," she practically spit the words out. "Merle was leaning against the wall looking bored as he waited." Danielle stopped trying to fight the tears and they flowed down her face.

"My Abigail looked so small. She was pale and could barely breathe. She had sweat pouring off her face. Milton told me that I needed to say good-bye. I walked over to the bed and I held her hand. Her hand was ice cold." Rick had both hands covering his mouth, Hershel was shaking his head looking at the ground and Daryl had turned around and was watching her with a look of both suspicion and sympathy.

"I leaned over and I kissed her forehead. And I told her I was sorry I didn't do better and told her I'd make it right. And then she took one more breath and was gone. The Governor came around behind me and helped me to my feet, actually trying to _comfort_ me!" Her eyes were hard again and her hands were shaking.

"He told Merle to take Abigail to Milton's lab. They duct taped her mouth and hands in case she turned on the way there, I guess. As they walked down the stairs, I heard Milton tell Merle to pull her teeth out before he put her in the cage. The Governor was still holding me, kissing my hair and telling me that I was so brave to let them do this. That the world would thank me one day after this research led to a cure. I pushed away from him and told him to get out. He said he understood that I needed time to grieve and that he would come by later to check on me." She paused and took another drink from the canteen.

"I think I cried for about an hour. I still didn't know what had happened. I let them kill my daughter and I was letting them use her as a lab rat. I knew she was going to turn and it sounded like they were just going to keep her…alive in that state forever while they did god knows what to her." I went downstairs and found Merle was sitting on my couch. He started smiling when he saw me." Daryl was leaning on the table, staring at her, his jaw set. When she mentioned Merle, Rick saw Daryl's fingers curl into fists. Rick didn't think Daryl would actually hit her but something was about to happen.

"'Well well well' he told me. 'Looks like it's just you and me now sugar'. I started past him to the door but he's so quick. He put me in a chokehold and I couldn't breathe. He kept shushing me and stroking my hair. 'That's right sugar. Just stay calm, it'll be alright. You just be a good girl and don't do nothing stupid now and everything will be alright.' I stopped fighting him and he let go of my neck but grabbed my hair instead. I know I cried out and he hit me. I knew I had to get out of there before he killed me. He forced me to my knees and unbuckled his pants. 'Now sugar, I ain't gonna do you like them other boys did but if you're just sweet to Merle for a little while, we'll be just fine.'" Daryl grabbed the canteen and threw it across the yard, pacing back and forth shaking his head. Rick jumped up quickly and tried to calm him down.

"Daryl, I know this is hard to hear but you can't be like this right now." Daryl shook his head and pointed to Danielle.

"You're talking like what she's sayin' is true. I know my brother and he's a lot of things but he doesn't rape women," Rick kept telling him to calm down, not realizing that Danielle had gotten to her feet and was right behind him until he saw Daryl glaring over his shoulder. Rick stood aside as Danielle reached up and touched Daryl's arm. He flinched and she pulled her hand back. Her eyes, though still angry, had softened a bit.

"You've been told your whole life that you and your brother are cut from the same cloth haven't you? You think that means whatever Merle did somehow comes back on you." Daryl shook his head.

"My brother wouldn't do this," he said but without the conviction of before.

"If it's any consolation, he didn't get to do anything. After I knocked him out, I grabbed my weapons bag and ran. I jumped the wall and made for the woods. I don't know if anyone saw me or if anyone said anything to me. I just ran." Danielle stopped and turned to Rick.

"Where are my weapons?" Glenn and Maggie, who had been standing back listening, brought the bag over and set it on the table. Danielle opened it and inspected the contents.

"Y'all didn't take anything did you?" Glenn shook his head.

"No, we didn't even open it." Danielle nodded and pulled the bag up on her shoulder.

"So, are you going to send me on my way or is there room in the big house for one more?" Rick frowned and shook his head.

"I think that's something that we need to discuss with the group…" He looked from Daryl to Hershel. Hershel started to speak when Daryl spoke up.

"She can stay." He turned and walked away, his head down. Rick looked from Danielle to Hershel and then caught up to Daryl, stopping him.

"Daryl, we need to talk about this. We've got too much too lose if she's lying to us." Daryl glanced back at her, looked at the ground and then back at Rick.

"Nah, she can stay. It's better we keep her here and keep an eye on her. I don't like what she's sayin' but that don't mean it ain't true." He looked back at Danielle and turned to walk the fence where another crowd of walkers was waiting. With a fury that surprised everyone, he began single handedly taking out every walker he saw.


	3. Bullseye

**A/N All characters belong to the writers and creators of The Walking Dead. Except those that arose from my own twisted imagination.**

**Chapter Three-Bullseye**

Danielle was grateful to Maggie for the clean clothes. The jeans were a little snug but would have to do until she could wash her own. She had washed up as best she could and brushed out her hair. Looking at her reflection in the broken mirror, she almost didn't recognize herself. Her eyes were sunken and the bruises stood out on her pale face. She pulled her hair back into a ponytail and walked back to the cell block. Carol, walking with baby Judith saw her and smiled.

"Do you feel better?" Danielle nodded.

"Where's Maggie? I need to thank her for the clothes." Carol nodded her chin towards the window.

"I think she's working in the garden with Beth. It's actually turning out pretty good. Glenn found a bunch of vegetable starters in someone's greenhouse and they're coming up rather nice." Judith sighed in her sleep. Danielle walked over and smiled down at the baby.

"She's beautiful. Is she yours?" Carol shook her head.

"This is Rick's baby girl. Her name's Judith. Rick's wife, Lori...she didn't make it through the labor." Carol's voice trailed off. Danielle took another look at the baby and thought of Abigail when she was that small. She fought back the tears, smiled at Carol and started to walk outside. Carol stopped her.

"I lost my Sophia. She got lost in the woods and when we found her…it was too late. Rick told me about what happened to your daughter. I can't say that I know what you're going through but…mother to mother…" Danielle smiled at her, turned and walked outside.

It was early evening now and it had actually cooled off. She saw Rick and Hershel, standing by the garden where the two girls were pulling weeds. Surveying the yard, she saw that one of the mattresses from a cot was propped up with a piece of paper tacked to the center. Daryl was giving a boy lessons on using a crossbow. Danielle walked over to her bag, which was still where she left it and picked it up, turning to walk towards the training grounds. Rick looked back and saw her. He quickly crossed the yard and joined her.

"I see you got settled in." Danielle nodded without stopping. Rick walked in front of her and stopped, forcing her to do the same.

"Where are you going with that?" He motioned to her bag. She raised her eyebrow at him.

"Let's see…I have my bow in here and that appears to be a target. I thought it would be a good idea to shoot at it and keep my skill up." When Rick didn't move, she put her hand on her hip. "What, do you think I'm going to assassinate you all while you sleep?"

"Look, I know Daryl said that it's better if we let you stay. But not everyone is going to feel comfortable knowing you're walking around armed." She laughed.

"Once they see me shoot, they'll feel a lot more comfortable knowing I'm walking around armed." She walked around Rick and continued towards Daryl and the boy. Daryl turned on her, standing between her and the boy.

"What do you think you're doin?" She ignored him and knelt down to open up her bag, pulling her bow out along with three arrows. She walked around him and began checking her strings and the pulleys. Everything looked ok. She pulled her glove on her hand and stood. Daryl took his crossbow from the boy.

"Carl, run over by your dad now." Carl frowned and obviously didn't want to listen but when he saw the look on Daryl's face, he decided this was one time he probably should. Danielle pretended to ignore it and set up for her first shot. The target wasn't that big and she over shot it. She swore and picked up her second arrow. Daryl stood back and watched her.

"You're not aiming level." Wrinkling her nose, she realized he was right and lowered her bow slightly. This time, she hit the mattress but missed to paper.

"Third times the charm," she muttered to herself and fired her third arrow. This one was a perfect bullseye. She smiled with satisfaction but wiped it off her face quickly when she turned and saw Daryl watching her. He nodded at the mattress.

"Not bad. Where'd you learn to shoot?"

"My dad. My dad's family is pure, one hundred percent Louisiana redneck. My grandma told me and my cousins that coming from Louisiana, it meant we were special because we were rednecks with hot sauce." Daryl smirked.

"Yeah but you sure don't sound like you spent your life running around the swamp, learning to shoot and climbing trees." She walked towards the target to retrieve the arrows and he followed.

"My mother and I were not close and my dad died when I was in high school so I went to college in California and just stayed out there until three years ago when we moved to Atlanta. Mother was from a very wealthy family in Jackson, Mississippi. All she was expected to do in life was marry well, serve on charity boards and leave her kids to be raised by a black nanny, just like she was. She was a pretty little spoiled sorority girl at Ole Miss when she met my dad. He was the starting quarterback for the Rebels and she decided that he fit the criteria: handsome, athletic and had the potential to make good money when he went pro. Since he had a large number of female followers, she decided to up the ante and got knocked up with me her junior year. Being the southern gentleman that he was, he married her and she spent the next fifteen years making his life a living hell." She raised her bow, aimed and once again hit the paper target. She was still too tense in her shoulders but this was better for her than any therapy. Daryl stood back and watched. After she shot the last two arrows, she set her bow down and stretched her neck and shoulders before sitting on the ground. She turned her head when she heard his footsteps moving away.

"I'm sorry," she called over her shoulder. She heard him stop.

"Sorry about what?" His voice was low and there was an edge to it.

"Sorry that I had to tell you that about your brother." Danielle turned and looked at him over her shoulder. He shook his head and kept walking. Danielle sighed and got up to retrieve her arrows. She needed the practice.

* * *

Beth watched from the garden as Danielle shot at the target again and again. Maggie saw her staring and kicked her sister in the leg.

"Quit staring at her." Beth moved out of her sister's reach.

"Do you think she's telling the truth? About what happened to her? She's not acting like you'd think someone would who had that actually happen to them…" she trailed off and looked at her sister apologetically. Maggie glared at her.

"What do you expect her to do? Curl up in a ball crying because of that? Completely check out on everything and forget about surviving just because she's been dealt a shitty hand?"

"You watch your mouth now missy," her father moved quickly and quietly on those crutches. "You girls don't need to be over here gossiping about someone you don't know nothing about. You have no idea what she's thinking right now. She lost her little girl and went through quite an ordeal." Beth interrupted him.

"If she's telling the truth. I heard Daryl say he doesn't believe her." Hershel frowned at his daughter.

"That's because it involves his brother. And no one wants to think that their kin is capable of that. That doesn't necessarily mean she's not being honest about it." Maggie looked over at Danielle, who was packing up her bag.

"I know what they are capable of in Woodbury. I don't doubt she's telling the truth." Hershel patted his daughter's shoulder.

"Come on inside girls and get washed up." He looked over at the fire pit where Axel was stirring something in the giant metal pot they found in the cafeteria kitchen. "It looks like dinner is almost ready."

* * *

Later that night, Daryl came downstairs from watch in the guard tower. He didn't ordinarily take the night shift but he needed to get away from everyone and think for a while. He didn't realize he'd dozed off until he heard Glenn's footsteps on the stairs. Glenn started to speak to him but thought the better of it. When Daryl walked into the cellblock, the only sounds were the rhythmic breathing coming from the cells. He paused by Rick's when he heard the baby stirring. Rick obviously hadn't yet heard her so Daryl picked her up and fixed her a bottle. Cooing quietly to her, he walked with her as she ate. When she fell back to sleep, he laid her back down on the mattress next to Rick. Now tired himself, Daryl climbed the stairs to the landing prepared to crash. He stopped when he realized he wasn't alone.

"What the hell are you doin' up here?" He whispered to Danielle.

"I can't sleep in a cell," she whispered. "I tried but had to come out here. I didn't think anyone else slept here." He frowned, angry now.

"Well you thought wrong. I sleep here." She pulled her blankets and pillow over to the far corner of the landing.

"Look, it's late and you need to sleep. I'll stay over here. I'll find someplace else tomorrow, okay?" Daryl didn't like it but for once was too tired to argue. He moved his blankets further away and lay down, his back to her, but was too aware of her presence to sleep. He rolled over and looked towards her. The full moonlight came in through the windows and he could see she was lying on her back, staring at the ceiling. He thought he could see tears on her face.

"Are you ok?" He whispered. She shook her head. Giving up on sleep for a little longer, he slid over to sit by her.

"How old was your little girl again?" Danielle sat up, wiped her face and pulled a wrinkled picture from her back pocket and handed it to him. It was a wallet sized school picture of a grinning little brunette, her hair in braids.

"She was nine. She would have turned ten in another couple of months. She was so excited about getting to be that two digit age." He smiled at the picture and handed it back. She brushed her finger across the picture and kissed it, the tears starting again.

"This is all I have left..." she was losing the battle to keep the tears and her grief inside. She shook her head, wiped the tears away and looked over at him.

"What about you? Any other family besides…" her voice trailed off. He tensed but let it go.

"No. My mom died when I was still a kid. My dad was a drunk. Merle was all I had."

"No kids?" Daryl shook his head and smirked.

"None that I know of anyway." He moved away from her and lay back down on his blanket, facing her.

"You should try to get some sleep. We've still got work to do tomorrow. Rick wants to clear out another cellblock and check for supplies. He might let you come along." She smiled and lay down turning on her side towards Daryl.

"Thanks for saying I could stay." Daryl didn't answer. Instead, he asked the question he really didn't want to know the answer to.

"How did you get away from Merle?" She shook her head.

"You really don't want to know the details." He propped his head up on his hand, a little pissed off.

"You weren't too shy on tellin' details earlier." Danielle bit her lower lip and thought about it.

"Let's just say," she said slowly, rolling on to her side away from him, "don't put anything near my mouth you don't want bitten off, okay?" Daryl flinched and turned over. He needed to sleep.


	4. The Courtyard

**A/N All characters belong to the writers and creators of The Walking Dead. Except those that arose from my own twisted imagination.**

**Chapter Four-The Courtyard**

Glenn looked over the Colt .45 from Danielle's backpack. She had brought her bow, the Colt and a hunting knife. She also had about fifty rounds of ammo and a dozen arrows.

"Not much of a stash," he said. Danielle chuckled. "I mean, how far were you thinking of going if we didn't let you stay?" Danielle set her bow down.

"I couldn't take that much. I was going to have to tie Abigail to my back and she's not…she _wasn't_…a little girl anymore. I had the bag that had the water and then this. It couldn't be too heavy. Plus, I couldn't grab that much from the armory without anyone noticing. This was standard issue for the group going on supply runs. There were always five in a group, all with a bag like this plus we had cars." She took the Colt from him and slid it in her holster. "I had my granddad's Henry rifle when I left Atlanta. I can't remember if it got lost or taken. Everything is such a blur." Glenn nodded.

"I know what you mean. It seems like this has been going on forever and it's only been two years since the first report." He put on the body armor vest he used for prison clear outs. "You sure you don't want to wear one?" She shook her head and pulled on her glove.

"Weighs me down and I can't move as fast. But thanks." Glenn laughed.

"You and Daryl have a lot in common. He won't wear it either." Danielle looked over her shoulder where Rick, Oscar and Daryl were going over a map of the prison they had recovered from the warden's office.

"I don't think he'd be too happy to hear about any similarities between the two of us." Glenn glanced over and then grabbed his knife and metal pipe.

"I think they're about ready." Glenn and Danielle joined the group gathering by the door. Rick faced everyone.

"I know we've been talking about doing this for a while but we've been putting it off. We keep running across civilian walkers in the back courtyard and we haven't been able to secure it, for obvious reasons. Now that we know we have an enemy not that far away, we need to make sure that we have this place locked down." He pointed to Daryl.

"Daryl's leading a group up to the second floor of the admin building. Once there, you'll have a clear view of the inner courtyard and should be able to see the back side of the prison. We've cleared to the warden's office but we need to clear further down to the end and we haven't been back for a few days. If there is a significant breech, it could be filled with walkers so be careful. Once you're secure, drop a flash grenade out the window. That's the signal that you're in. Try to take out as many walkers as you can from above and we'll finish it. Cover us and once the courtyard is clear and secure, we'll signal you to join us and then we'll move on." Rick nodded to Maggie and Glenn.

"You two go with Daryl. Danielle, Oscar and Axel, you're with me." Danielle started to protest but Daryl spoke first.

"I don't need two people who can't shoot that good. If you're going in on the ground, you need the manpower there." He nodded at Danielle. "You're with me." Everyone was quiet and Danielle didn't move. Rick leaned over and spoke quietly.

"Do you think that's a good idea? I think it's better to keep you separate…" Daryl shook his head.

"Nah it's fine. She can shoot straight and it'll be easier to move in with two people." He picked up a rifle off the table and handed it to Danielle. "That'll work better than that Colt when we get up there. Come on." Carl unlocked the door and Daryl, Danielle and the others quickly headed out. They made their way through the hallways to the door that led to the secure walkway, used to transport the prisoners from the cellblock to the admin building for everything from parole hearings to release processing. They opened the door and moved in single file. They encountered two walkers and Daryl and Rick dispatched them quickly. They continued the sweep of the lower floor.

"It looks clear," Rick said, keeping his voice low. No one responded, still on alert. When they got to the staircase to the second floor, Daryl motioned for Danielle.

"Let's go." Rick handed him the flash grenade.

"Remember, once you get to the end and it's secure, use this and we'll go to the courtyard." Daryl nodded then he and Danielle walked slowly up the stairs.

The warden's office was at the top of the stairs, the door open. A quick sweep revealed it was just as they had left it. Most of the doors had windows which allowed for enough light to see down the hall. Daryl kept his crossbow at the ready and Danielle had her hunting knife curved into her body, ready to strike. She walked two steps behind him, watching his back as he checked the other offices. They found one walker, probably a secretary of some sort based on her dress but everything else seemed clear. There were a number of bodies, mostly guards but a few were probably civilian employees. All had been shot, some multiple times. A few looked like suicides. Danielle tried to breathe through her mouth but couldn't help but gag on the smell.

"It was a massacre," she whispered. Daryl didn't respond and kept his eyes focused.

At the end of the hallway was a solid door with a sign that read "Conference Room". The hallway branched out, one side leading away from the courtyard and the other leading to another staircase. Daryl looked at Danielle when they reached the door.

"When I give the signal, you open that door and be ready." She nodded and closed her hand around the doorknob. He looked her in the eye, counted to three and she pushed the door open. Immediately, they heard the telltale sounds of walkers.

"Shit!" Daryl backed up as two walkers pushed forward. He took one out with the crossbow and dropped back to reload. Danielle stabbed the other in the eye, dropped it and kicked it aside. She moved into the room, turning quickly at the growl to her right. She dropped that walker but didn't see the one that was behind her until it was almost on her. She backed up and tripped over the body, dropping her knife. The walker fell on her, growling and snapping. The smell of rotting flesh filled her nose. She grabbed it by the throat and fumbled for her knife. Her fingers sank into the rotting flesh and she fought the urge to vomit. Her fingers finally found the blade and she grabbed it, slicing through the meat of her hand but she barely felt the pain. She knocked the walker aside and flipped the knife over to grab the handle. With both hands, she drove the blade through the walker's skull. She paused for a moment to breathe and started when she heard footsteps behind her. Daryl walked cautiously over to her, put his boot on the walker's skull and wrenched the knife free.

"You alright?" She shook her head. He reached down and lifted her injured left hand. She had sliced through her palm and three fingers. The cut to her palm was deep.

"I'm ok. I didn't get its blood on my hand." Daryl frowned and helped her to her feet. Looking around, he saw a carafe in the center of the conference table. Lifting the lid and sniffing it, he decided the water inside was good enough for first aid.

"Come here. Let's get you cleaned up." She walked over to him and held out her hand. He poured the water over the cut and she hissed as the pain hit. She gritted her teeth and allowed him to finish cleaning her wound and bandage it with a piece of his shirt. Once the bandage was tightened, she flexed her hand. It hurt but she could stand it long enough to do what they needed to do. Daryl watched her closely.

"Can you still shoot?" She nodded and reached back, unhooking her bow off the quiver. They looked around the room, verifying it was clear.

"Looks like they were trying to hide in here," Danielle said. Daryl nodded.

"Probably. Someone was either scratched or bit before they got in here. With the door shut they couldn't get out." He walked over to the windows on the far wall. "We have a clear view of the courtyard." Danielle shut the door and joined him. The courtyard was filled with walkers.

"We don't have enough arrows between us to get them all," she said. "We're going to have to use the guns." He nodded and they both laid down their bows. Daryl tried to open the large window but it was sealed shut. He looked around the room and saw a small television on a cart. He picked it up and carried it to the window.

"Back up." Danielle did and Daryl threw the television through the glass. Using the butt of their guns, they cleared the broken shards and positioned themselves at the window. Danielle looked over to the back wall. She could see a fence was torn down and it looked like the back side of the building had been blown open. She nudged Daryl and pointed it out. As they looked, they saw that a door on the building was ajar and another walker pushed through it. They could see a handful of walkers beyond the broken fence.

"That's how they're getting in," Danielle said. "How are we going to secure that?" Daryl looked around and shook his head.

"I can't see how from up here. Glenn's pretty good at that stuff. He'll figure it out." He brought his shotgun to his shoulder and she did the same with her rifle.

"Don't shoot unless you've got a clean headshot," he said. "We don't want to waste ammo. We'll take out those that we can then throw the grenade." Danielle looked down.

"We've got a blind spot right below us."

"We'll let them deal with that when they come through the door. They'll be prepared for it. Let's get the ones we can." With that, they both took aim and started firing.

Once the grenade went off, Rick and the rest of the ground crew went into the courtyard. A couple of walkers were right outside the door but the majority of the remaining walkers across the courtyard. Rick turned and looked up to the window, signaling Daryl and Danielle to join them. A minute later, they came out the door. Danielle raised her bow and took out a walker coming around the corner and then ran over to Rick.

"There's part of the fence that's down over there and one of the buildings is partially destroyed. We can probably secure the building but I don't know what we can do about the fence." Rick raised his gun and shot another walker.

"Take Glenn and Oscar with you. See what can get done. If you can't find a fix in five minutes, get back here." She nodded and ran off with Glenn and Oscar. Rick, Daryl, Axel and Maggie moved forward.

"How'd she do?" Rick asked, raising his gun to take out another walker. They seemed to be coming from the direction of the unsecured building.

"She did alright," said Daryl. "She's hurt pretty bad. Sliced her hand up when we ran into some walkers." Maggie looked worried.

"Did she get bit?" Daryl shook his head, raised his crossbow and shot another walker.

"No but if those walkers smell that blood, they're in trouble."

* * *

Fighting their way through a group of walkers, Glenn, Oscar and Danielle made it to the downed fence. A bomb must have gone off nearby or been dropped from above. The backsides of the buildings were charred and one of the towers had collapsed on the fence. Oscar saw it first and swore.

"There's no way we can fix that." Glenn surveyed the damage and saw he was right. They'd need heavy equipment to lift that fence. The only thing they could do would be to try to block it off…but with what?

"Glenn!" Danielle's voice shook him from his thoughts and he almost missed the walker heading towards him. There were a number of them climbing through the broken fence. Danielle pulled her colt and fired but realized there were too many.

"We need to go back! We'll have to figure something else out!" Glenn and Oscar turned quickly and the three ran to find Rick and the others.

Rick and Maggie carried filled sandbags to prop against the busted door on the damaged building while Axel held it closed against the walkers pushing against it. The sandbags had been used as a barricade, probably whenever the riot broke out at the prison. When the last one was in place, Rick motioned for Axel to let go. When he did, the door held though they could hear the walkers banging on it.

"That should hold it," Rick nodded. "Now we just have to wait for Glenn." The met up with Daryl who was covering their backs and headed back to the courtyard. There were a few new walkers and they quickly took them out. Rick looked around for Glenn and the others. It had been longer than five minutes.

"Something must have happened," he said. They started in the direction Danielle had indicated and stopped when they heard gunshots. Suddenly, Danielle ran around the corner, followed close behind by Oscar and Glenn.

"Get inside! They're right behind us!" Not having to be told twice, Rick opened the door to the admin building and the group made it inside just as a large group of walkers turned around the corner. Breathing hard, Rick leaned against the door.

"What happened?" Glenn put his hands on his knees and tried to catch his breath.

"That fence is a total loss. There's no way we can fix it." Angry, Rick kicked the door.

"Dammit! That means the whole backside is vulnerable, not just from walkers but anyone else who decides to come in here!" He ran his hand through his hair as he tried to figure out what to do.

"We need to tighten up what we can," said Oscar. We know what buildings we cleared and we know what we can secure. We just need to beef up our defenses there." Maggie nodded.

"He's right. We can lockdown our section. We have the cafeteria, the infirmary and the armory. You can't get better than that."

"Exactly," Glenn said. "We just have to defend what we have." Daryl and Danielle nodded in agreement. Daryl started back down the hall.

"C'mon. Let's go." The group followed.

* * *

Back in the cellblock, Axel headed to the cafeteria with Carol and Beth to fix dinner. Maggie, Glenn and Oscar went out to walk the fence. Daryl sat with Danielle as Hershel stitched her hand. She tried not to move but couldn't help but flinch as the needle passed through her flesh. Hershel made the last stitch and wrapped her hand with gauze.

"You'll need to change that bandage a couple times a day at least. And watch it for infection." Danielle smiled at him.

"Thanks." Hershel smiled back, patted her arm and got up from the table. She flexed her hand and she could feel the stitches pulling in her skin. She looked at Daryl.

"I don't know how I'm going to grip my bow until these come out." He looked at her hand and then pulled her knife from the sheath on her hip. Inspecting the blade, he whistled.

"Sharp as this is, you're lucky you didn't cut deeper." He laid the knife on the table, stared at it for a minute and then looked at her.

"You did good today. Better than I thought you would." She smiled.

"Thanks. I'm just sorry we couldn't finish what we set out to do. It seems like it was a waste of time and ammo." She looked up as Rick joined them, holding the baby. Judith was wide awake and waving her fists, hitting her father. Her little face bunched up and she started to cry.

"I think she's hungry," said Danielle, smiling at the baby. Rick nodded.

"Carl's fixing her bottle." As if on cue, Carl walked in with the baby's formula. Danielle held out her hands.

"Do you mind if I feed her?" Rick hesitated and then handed her the baby. Immediately she flashed on the moment Abigail was born. She shook away the memory and took the bottle from Carl. As soon as the bottle was in her mouth, Judith stopped crying and locked eyes with Danielle. Carl smiled.

"She likes you." Danielle laughed.

"She likes whoever is giving her something to eat is more like it." Daryl leaned over and stroked Judith's cheek before giving her his finger to hold.

"How's the little Ass Kicker doin?" Danielle looked at him.

"Ass Kicker? You nicknamed her Ass Kicker?" Daryl grinned at the baby.

"She likes that name. And she earned it because that's what she is." Judith stopped drinking. Danielle set the bottle down and put the baby to her shoulder, rubbing her back.

"Maybe on the next supply run we can find a rocking chair," she said. Daryl laughed. Carl stood up.

"I can take her." Danielle handed him the baby. He held her with one arm and picked up the bottle with his free hand. Daryl started to stand up.

"You be careful now. Don't be carrying her all over like that." Carl wrinkled his nose up at him as both he and Rick walked back to the cell area, leaving Daryl and Danielle alone. The tension was almost palpable. Danielle stood first.

"I better go figure out a different place to sleep tonight since the perch is off limits." She kept her back to Daryl. "I'll drag a mattress out and sleep on the floor down here." She started to walk away when she heard him get up.

"You can sleep wherever you want. I don't care." He started past her but stopped when she touched his arm.

"Daryl," he turned his head slightly. "You're a better man than your brother. You have to know that." He looked up and met her eyes for a moment then looked away. He stepped out of her reach before answering.

"Thanks."


	5. Night Watch

**A/N All characters belong to the writers and creators of The Walking Dead. Except those that arose from my own twisted imagination.**

**Chapter Five-Night Watch**

The night was quiet. With everything secured from walkers, the only real need to keep watch at night was for the living. Rick insisted that everyone take their turn on night duty so Maggie and Danielle volunteered. Over the past few days, they had bonded over their similar experiences of abuse at the hands of the Governor and, in spite of a ten year age gap, were quickly becoming friends. Sitting up in the tower, they kicked back and stared into the darkness. The only light came from the stars. Even with the thick trees, they should be able to see lights from an oncoming vehicle in more than enough time to get downstairs and warn the others. No one slept that deep anymore anyway, not since the group got back from Woodbury.

"Glenn hasn't slept a single night through since then," said Maggie. "He says that he can't sleep because he's worried about me not sleeping. I've tried to tell him that I can't sleep because I'm worried about him not sleeping." Both girls laughed. "It's a vicious cycle I'm tellin' you." She stretched and glanced around the yard. Everything outside was quiet. Danielle could make out the shapes of walkers in the outside fields, wandering aimlessly looking for anything to sink their teeth into.

"I've kind of figured everyone's on edge. Daryl just tosses and turns up on the landing. I know I make him uncomfortable and I've tried to say I'm fine on the ground but he said the concrete is too cold and if I can't sleep in a cell, I might as well sleep on the landing. I asked Hershel about it and he kind of said Daryl had a point but…" Danielle bit her lip. "I just don't want to be responsible for everyone being all wound up all the time, especially Daryl. I'm trying to stay out of his way but whenever we group up, he's always there. I go down for target practice and I know he's watching me. I don't know whether it's because he thinks I'm gonna go after y'all or if it's something else." Maggie frowned.

"Daryl's different than the rest of us. He's always got to do his own thing. Glenn said he's more social now than he was before I knew him, not that that's really sayin' much. The only other person I've seen him interact with really, I mean besides the baby, is Carol. I thought they were getting pretty close there for awhile." Danielle stood from the chair and leaned against the table, facing Maggie.

"Carol had a daughter too, didn't she?" Maggie nodded. "What happened?"

"Their group was on the highway by our farm and got ambushed by a herd of walkers. Carol's daughter Sophia got chased into the woods. Rick went after her but somehow she got separated. Daryl went nuts looking for her. When other people wanted to give up, he went out on his own. He borrowed one of our horses and got thrown down an embankment. Got impaled on one of his arrows, took out a couple of walkers that attacked him, messed up his shoulder…Dad was not too happy having to fix him up. That was before we knew what the walkers really were. Dad thought that they were just sick and we needed to wait for a cure so we kept the walkers locked in our barn." Danielle started at this news.

"You did what?" Maggie got defensive.

"We didn't know what was going on. All communication dropped out. Our farm was back off the highway, you wouldn't have known we were there unless you were lookin' for us. You don't just kill sick people and Dad was sure that a cure or something was coming any day. Their group found out that the walkers were in the barn and one of them, this asshole guy Shane, he opened the door and let them out and started killing them. After most of the walkers were gone, Sophia came out…" Maggie's voice trailed off. Danielle was shocked.

"She'd turned." Maggie nodded.

"I think she was twelve. Daryl kind of broke down after that. He stayed away from everyone, even talked about going off on his own to look for his brother but in the end he decided to stay. We made it here and it was a mess. We cleaned out the walkers but we lost some people. After walkers got in the cellblock, we lost Carol and thought she was dead. Rick's wife, Lori, she went into labor but something was wrong and I had to do a c-section to save the baby. She didn't make it and Carl shot her before she could turn. Rick went nuts for a while and Daryl stepped up and took care of that baby. A few days later he found Carol. That was when Glenn and I got taken by Merle to Woodbury." She paused and took a drink of water. "You know what happened next." Danielle let out a bitter laugh.

"Yeah. But why then, if he knows what Merle did to y'all does he not believe me?" Maggie shrugged.

"You heard what he said. 'My brother's a lot of things but he ain't no rapist'. Kidnapping me and Glenn, he could accept that. Beating Glenn almost to death, he could accept that too. But actually trying to force himself on a woman, that's a step too far." Danielle could see Maggie smile in the dark.

"Did you really bite him?" Danielle's eyes widened.

"Did Daryl tell you that?" Maggie shook her head.

"I heard y'all talking that night. Everything echoes in those cells. Everything." Danielle laughed.

"I did. When he dropped to the ground I hit him over the head and then kicked the shit out of him. I'd honestly be surprised if I didn't damn near kill him." Maggie nodded.

"Good. Son of a bitch had it coming." They were both quiet a moment.

"You like him don't you?" Danielle's eyes widened.

"Who?" Maggie rolled her eyes.

"Who do you think? Daryl. You like him." Danielle started to protest.

"Don't deny it. I see the way you look at him. Everyone can. You like who he is, how he looks, what he can do. Probably the only one who doesn't see it is Daryl and that's only because he wouldn't figure it out unless you jumped in his lap naked. And even then I'm not sure he'd know what the hell you were doing." Danielle was speechless for a moment.

"He's just something familiar. I grew up around men like him. I can relate to him. That's it. It's probably just my stupid subconscious way of trying to grab on to something that feels normal again." Neither girl spoke for a few minutes. It was after two am and they were both getting tired. Their relief should be coming up soon. Maggie was pretty sure it was Oscar or Axel.

"You should try it and see what happens." Danielle, who had been thinking about the supply run the next day, didn't understand what Maggie was talking about.

"I should try what?" Maggie looked at her incredulous.

"Try talking to Daryl. See if you can feel him out. Don't tell me you're as dense as he is. He may not even realize it but he might like you. Seriously, what have you got to lose? It's not like you've got a bunch of choices anymore." Maggie started counting on her fingers. "Rick's got a ton of baggage, Glenn's taken, there's my dad…" she trailed off and shuddered. Danielle laughed. "and then there's Axel and Oscar." Danielle shook her head no. "Exactly. So who does that leave you? You'd have to wait another ten years or so for Carl to grow up. Daryl's the only one left."

"Maggie, I'm not going to go after Daryl just because he's the only man around who's remotely available!" Danielle went quiet when she heard the door open to the tower and footsteps on the stairs. Maggie stood up and shrugged.

"I didn't say you had to sleep with him. I just said talk to him. Y'all are a lot more alike than you realize." The door to the control room opened and Daryl walked in. Danielle felt her face burn red. Maggie's eyes widened and she tried to hold back laughter. Daryl looked at her.

"What's going on?" Maggie shook her head, trying hard to keep the smile off her face.

"Nothing. I think I'm going to bed." Maggie held the door open as Daryl sat in one of the chairs and put his feet up on the control board, his crossbow in his lap. Danielle, still surprised and embarrassed at almost getting caught having that particular discussion, hadn't moved from her chair. Daryl glanced at her.

"You goin' or stayin'?" Danielle started to get up but Maggie shook her head at her.

"Talk to him," Maggie mouthed at her. Danielle flipped her off and readjusted herself in her chair.

"If it's alright, I can stay up here a bit longer." Daryl shrugged without looking over at her and kept staring at the window. Maggie gave Danielle thumbs up and went down the stairs. Daryl and Danielle sat in silence. She did not want to be the one to speak first.

"How's your hand?" She actually jumped when he spoke, she was so tense.

"It's fine. Hershel said there's no sign of infection. He should be able to take the stitches out in a couple of days." Daryl nodded slightly.

"Did you grow up in Louisiana?" He was actually talking to her. Five nights of sleeping not three feet from him and this was probably the longest conversation they'd had outside of planning strategy. She swallowed. She didn't know why she was so damn nervous.

"Yes. We lived in a trailer on my grandparent's property."

"Just you and your mom and dad?" He still hadn't looked her way, keeping his eyes focused on the window and the world outside.

"In the trailer. My dad's three brothers lived within walking distance so I had all my cousins around all the time. I was the only girl out of the bunch." Daryl looked over at her for a moment and then returned his gaze to the window.

"That's how you learned how to hunt?"

"My dad took me duck hunting for the first time when I was six. I could shoot any gun straight by the time I was ten. I was twelve when I got my bow and took down my first deer. I knew how to catch it, I knew how to kill it and I knew how to clean it. Never did learn how to cook it." Daryl smirked.

"That must have made your momma real proud." This time Danielle snorted.

"That woman hated me from the moment she laid eyes on me." Daryl looked over at her, frowning.

"I thought you said she got knocked up on purpose?" Danielle nodded.

"She did. It just didn't work out the way she planned it. See, Daddy was supposed to graduate from Ole Miss and then play for the NFL and become the next Joe Namath. Then she could be free to sit back and spend his money while she left me with the help. She didn't want to be a mother. Instead, they got married right away to avoid the dreaded scandal in Jackson with my mother's family, she dropped out of school while Daddy finished but the offers to play pro football never came. Since he had my mother to support and me on the way, he brought her home to his parents. Mother deemed him useless even though he worked his fingers to the bone every day. She wasn't happy but her parents wouldn't let her even think of getting a divorce. So, instead she drank herself stupid and bitched at him day in and day out for not being good enough, for being backwoods redneck trash. I think he would have been a drinker too if Grandad and MeeMaw hadn't been so against alcohol. When I was born, Mother just brushed me off as another white trash kid and let MeeMaw raise me. She might as well not have existed as far as I was concerned. She was just the drunk bitch in the trailer." She paused. She really hadn't meant to say all of that. Daryl was looking back out the window.

"My mom was a drunk too. She smoked in bed. Fell asleep and burned the house down with one of her cigarettes. I was out playing with some of the kids from the neighborhood when it happened."

"I'm sorry." Daryl looked over at her.

"Don't be. I'm not." A star shot across the sky. Daryl smiled.

"I remember one of my teachers in school telling us about shooting stars and making wishes on 'em. I sat out one night watching for one. I really wanted a bike and I really wanted my daddy to stop knocking me and Merle around. I just wasn't sure which one I wanted to wish for first. Merle came out and asked what the hell I was doin'. When I told him, he said it was horseshit and that wishes were for pussies. And that I better get my ass inside before he whupped me one." He looked at his crossbow and set it on the control table. "I guess it's too late to start believing in that shit now." Danielle shrugged.

"I don't know. I still believe in wishes coming true." Daryl laughed.

"What's wishing going to get you? It's not going to get your daughter back. It's not going to make you un-raped." That was the first time he'd mentioned that since the first day. "Prayin', wishing, hoping…none of that means shit when you've got fifty walkers on your ass."

"True but we're not under attack now. We've got the place secure, we've got food and water. Good people to be around and a roof over our heads. That's a lot to ask for right now." He thought about that.

"You might be right. I don't know." Low in the east, a faint light was rising. Daryl stood .

"Another few hours and the sun'll be up." He stretched and looked closely at her. "Did you get any sleep tonight?" Her eyelids were heavy and her head nodded. She felt his hand shake her shoulder.

"Danielle." That woke her up. The first time he had actually said her name. She opened her eyes and saw him looking at her with a trace of concern. When he spoke next, his voice was quiet.

"Why don't you go down and go to sleep? We're doing a supply run sometime tomorrow. You don't want to get caught tired out there." She nodded and got to her feet.

"Good night." She passed by him towards the door when he stopped her.

"Danielle don't sound like any redneck name I ever heard." There was a slight mocking tone to his voice. She met his gaze and for the first time she saw genuine kindness.

"Everyone called me Dani when I lived back here." Daryl nodded his head and opened the door for her.

"Dani'll do." He shut the door behind her. She carefully made her way down the stairs and into the cellblock. She saw that her blankets were already made up on her side. Grateful, she pulled the blanket over her shoulder and went to sleep.


	6. Following Orders

**A/N All characters belong to the writers and creators of The Walking Dead. Except those that arose from my own twisted imagination.**

**Chapter Six-Following Orders**

Daryl took Carl out for more target practice. The kid was good but he was still trying too hard. After the third time he overshot the target, Daryl took his crossbow back.

"Look you're doin' it wrong. You're thinkin' too much about it." He raised the crossbow and demonstrated. "You point, aim, shoot." The arrow hit the bullseye. Daryl loaded another arrow and handed it back to Carl. "Quit thinkin' about stuff so much. It just gets in the way." Carl raised the crossbow, took a deep breath and fired. The arrow hit the mattress. Daryl nodded his approval.

"See? You relax and go." He retrieved the arrows from the ground and the two from the target and handed them to Carl. Carl loaded an arrow, aimed and fired. He hit the mattress again, closer to the paper target this time.

"Good, you're doin' good. Keep workin' on it." Carl loaded another arrow.

"Danielle said she'd teach me how to shoot her bow." Daryl looked surprised.

"Did she now?" Carl nodded, aimed the crossbow and fired. This time, he hit the target. He picked up another arrow.

"Don't you think she's pretty cool?"

"She does what needs doin'. That's all I care about." Carl lowered the crossbow and looked up at Daryl.

"But you like her don't you?" Daryl frowned.

"What the hell are you getting' at?" Carl shrugged.

"I heard Maggie tell Glenn that Danielle had a thing for you." Daryl, who was taking a drink from the canteen, about choked. He recovered quickly and glared at Carl.

"I told you to stop thinkin' so much. And you need to stop listening in on people talkin' bout things you've got no business hearing." He took the crossbow back from Carl. "Go find your dad. Tell him we're heading out in a bit."

Maggie, Daryl and Danielle packed up the car with rations in case they got into trouble on the road. Danielle had suggested heading southeast towards Barnesville, in order to avoid any encounters with scouts from Woodbury.

"When we'd go on runs, we never went this far out. The Governor didn't want to waste the gas." She pointed on the road map. "We don't want to get too close but there's some other stores and houses out that way where we can stock up. The only problem is that unless there's another group out that way who's like we are, the walkers are going to be bad so we won't want to use our guns unless we have to." Daryl and Maggie nodded in agreement.

"But it'll be worth it if we find someplace that hasn't been cleared out," said Maggie. She picked up the full gas can and put it in the car, alongside the three empty ones. This was going to be a big run, one they hoped not to have to make again for a while, so they needed to siphon more gas. Once they were ready, she kissed Glenn and hugged her father and Beth and got in the driver's seat. Danielle climbed in the passenger side leaving Daryl in the back to keep an eye out behind them. As they started up the car, Rick leaned in the window.

"Y'all be careful out there. You know what we need so just get it and get back safe." Daryl nodded. The rest of the group went to the fence to distract the walkers while Carl opened the gate and Maggie headed towards the highway.

"Turn left up here," Danielle told Maggie, reading the map. It had been a long drive but only because they had to maneuver around a number of wrecks, a large group of walkers that Maggie plowed through only after Daryl yelled at her to put the goddamn pedal to the floor and they had finally made it onto Highway 18 and it looked relatively clear. They drove through the countryside, past houses that had seen better days to others that were probably the mansions of the area. So many of the homes looked tempting but the group was too wary of the conditions to inspect them. Looking out the window, the could see walkers in the fields.

"How many people lived in Barnesville?" Maggie asked Danielle. Danielle's ex-husband had been a doctor and often spent weeks in rural Georgia and Alabama at local hospitals and clinics.

"I think about six thousand or something like that." Maggie took a deep breath.

"And we're sure we want to do this?" Danielle looked over at her. Maggie had a look of panic on her face. She'd almost forgotten that this was the first time Maggie had done a supply run since being kidnapped.

"Hey, we'll be fine. Just breathe." Maggie nodded and exhaled. They passed more cars on the side of the road and more walkers but didn't see any survivors. Danielle was starting to worry that she'd made a mistake.

"I feel like we're in the middle of Mad Max or something." She felt Daryl lean on the back of the seat.

"You better hope you didn't just lead us into Thunderdome." She turned and saw that he was glaring at her. "Because I sure as shit ain't saving your ass out of that." Finally, they passed between the two area schools. It appeared that they had been used by the military for a refugee center, probably sometime before Atlanta fell.

"We're almost there," said Danielle. She could see two large buildings straight ahead and the sign for a Shell station. When they passed a Walgreens and a grocery store, Daryl finally spoke.

"This is close enough. We don't know how many walkers there are out here. We got room to get out around here if we have to." He directed Maggie to pull into the market's parking lot. "This place was probably wiped out when they all took off but if the army got people rounded up real quick, there might be some good stuff left." Maggie parked in front of the doors and turned off the engine. All three stared through the glass doors to the dark store. Finally, Daryl opened up the door.

"Well, let's get this over with." The girls followed behind, watching each other's backs and slowly made their way into the store. Once inside, Maggie and Danielle pulled out their flashlights but Daryl motioned for the girls to put them away.

"Let your eyes adjust first. We got enough light coming in through the windows." All three listened close for any sound. Danielle grabbed a cart. While the place had been looted and there was a distinct smell of rotting vegetables they could see that they had hit a gold mine. Walking down the aisles, it looked like people had gone for easy food to eat on the road. Almost all the snack foods were gone. They quickly found the baby aisle and grabbed most of the powdered formula, six packs of diapers and a squeaky giraffe toy that Maggie could not resist. The girls were almost giddy when they saw that the canned food aisle was relatively well stocked.

"Hershel said to grab vitamins if we find them," Maggie said, reading off the list her father had handed her. Daryl looked down the aisles and waved them over. Grabbing medicine, vitamins and other supplies for first aide, they quickly filled the cart. Daryl was getting nervous.

"This is just too easy," he kept saying. After Maggie checked that they had everything that had been requested, he quickly motioned them back to the front of the store. Passing by one of the registers, he grabbed a pack of Slim Jims and tossed them on the top of the food. Danielle raised her eyebrow at him.

"What?" he asked, a bit defensive.

"Nothing." Danielle could barely hide her smile. Hearing a noise outside the door, she stopped smiling. She grabbed her bow off her shoulder and loaded it.

"Shit. Walkers." Daryl raised his crossbow and walked in front of the girls.

"Stay back and shut up," he ordered. He ducked behind one of the registers and looked out the door. In front of the store, he could see one walker. It was bumping up against a loose shopping cart. Further across the parking lot, he saw three more. It wouldn't take long for one of them to ring the dinner bell.

"Dani!" She walked slowly, ducking down behind the register, until she was next to him. "You open the door and I'll take care of the walkers. You and Maggie get the car loaded up. We didn't come all this way to leave that shit behind." She nodded and crept back to Maggie. After explaining the plan, Maggie carefully positioned the cart by the door, being careful to not let the walker see her. Danielle looked at Daryl who nodded and held up three fingers. On one, Danielle pushed the door open and Daryl ran out shooting the walker by the door and quickly reloading to cover the girls who opened the hatch of the car and began throwing things in as quickly as they could. A couple of cans of soup rolled out and hit the ground. The three walkers picked up the pace when they heard the noise and saw food. Leaving Maggie to finish loading, Danielle raised her bow, took a deep breath and fired an arrow straight through the eye of the nearest walker. While she reached for another arrow, Daryl took out another one. After she got the third, Maggie slammed the hatch closed.

"We've got everything! Let's go!" Scanning the area and seeing more walkers heading there way, Danielle ran towards the three fallen walkers to retrieve her arrows. She heard Daryl yell at her to come back but she quickly reached the bodies, yanked the arrows free and ran back to the car. As Maggie started the engine, a walker slapped the driver's side window. She peeled out of the parking lot and got back on highway 18, flooring it back to the prison. Daryl was pissed.

"Goddammit Danielle! What the hell were you thinking?" He rubbed his face with his hands and glared at her. "Are you just that stupid? Those geeks could have had you!" Her face flamed red and she clenched her jaw. She turned and threw his arrow on the floor.

"You're welcome." He picked it up and shook his head.

"Stupid bitch." Danielle turned back around, shaking. It hurt to see the anger, fear and absolute disappointment on Daryl's face. Like he'd lost what little respect for her he had. Maggie glanced in the rearview mirror and then over at Danielle.

"It's ok. We made it out. It was close, but we did it so let's just get back home, ok?" Danielle turned to look out the window, chewing on her thumbnail. Her heart was still pounding and she didn't know if it was because of her incredibly stupid close call or knowing that she was probably going to have to find a different spot to sleep tonight.

They stopped about ten miles out to put gas in the car and siphon gas from several cars that had been abandoned. Daryl took over driving for Maggie, who got into the backseat and almost promptly fell asleep. He drove fast, weaving quickly around the stopped cars they had carefully driven past earlier. The sun would be setting soon and there was a good possibility that they wouldn't get back to the prison until after dark. With the road open, he floored the gas pedal.

They made it back to the prison just after sunset. Glenn and Rick met them at the gate to let them in. When they parked, everyone came out to help carry in the supplies. Rick noticed that Daryl was even less talkative than usual. He waited until everyone else had gone inside before asking what had happened.

"Little miss redneck swamp girl almost got herself killed going after her arrows. The geeks were right there but she ran at the bodies she dropped like she didn't even see them." Rick put his hands on his hips.

"I'll talk to her if you think that will help for next time." Daryl shook his head.

"There won't be a next time. I'm not going on any more supply runs with someone who don't listen and I can't trust to watch my back." With that he stomped into the cellblock. He put his crossbow on the table and started towards the cafeteria where Hershel and Beth had kept stew warm.

"Daryl." Danielle's voice in the shadows stopped him cold. "Daryl, I'm sorry." He turned towards her voice and saw her sitting against the wall. He stood over her.

"Don't pull that shit on me again, you hear me? When we're out there you listen to what I say. And if I say get your ass in the car, you better listen." Danielle met his eyes and then looked away, nodding. He watched her face for a moment.

"You're not cryin' again are you?" She scowled at him.

"No. I'm not crying." She almost spit out the words. Daryl smirked at her and walked to the cafeteria.


	7. Twisted

**A/N All characters belong to the writers and creators of The Walking Dead. Except those that arose from my own twisted imagination.**

**Chapter Seven-Twisted  
**

Danielle held her hand still as Hershel removed the stitches. Her hand was still sore but there was no infection and it had healed nicely. After he removed the last one, he washed her wound with alcohol.

"Can you close your hand?" He asked her. She made a fist, flinched a little at the pulling sensation and nodded. "Good. You'll be ready to go back out on the road in no time." Danielle shook her head.

"I doubt it. Daryl and Rick are not going let me back out there, not after last time. They think I'll get people killed." Hershel rose carefully on one foot and balanced on his crutches.

"Well, now you have to admit that what you did wasn't the smartest thing to do. You were living in Woodbury through the worst of this. You haven't seen everything that we've seen. But don't worry. Rick's a smart man and he won't let someone with your abilities go to waste stayin' inside keeping house." Danielle rose and walked with him outside. Hershel reminded her of her granddad. He didn't say much but when he did speak, you were wise to listen to him. She ran her hands through her hair and scanned the yard.

"He isn't here." Maggie walked outside with her laundry, Beth right behind her with hers. Maggie stopped by Danielle and motioned back to the cellblock. "C'mon. Go get your clothes. We're heading down to get these washed." Danielle hurried inside and grabbed the clothes she had worn when she left Woodbury. She hadn't washed them yet, hadn't even looked at them, since Maggie had given her a pair of jeans and a tank top. Carol had sworn that she didn't need her long sleeved flannel shirt anymore and Oscar had given Danielle a couple of small prison issue white t-shirts he'd taken from the prison laundry along with a pair of oversized sweatpants that, despite being a medium, were still too baggy on her. Eating the rationed diet at the prison had caused her to lose more weight so Maggie's jeans weren't near as snug as they had been that first day. She ducked into one of the cells, stripped off the jeans and tank top and pulled on the clean sweats and t-shirt. She pulled the drawstring tight and rolled the waistband down to pull the legs up higher. Danielle was by no means a short woman but she couldn't believe how long the sweatpants were. Grabbing all of her clothes, she walked quickly down to the water to catch up with Maggie and Beth.

* * *

Rick and Carol sat with Judith under a makeshift tent to keep the sun off the baby's face. Rick glanced around the yard in awe. He could hear the girls laughing as they did their laundry by hand. Axel and Oscar were arguing good naturedly over a game of chess while Carl watched nearby. Glenn and Hershel were having a semi-serious conversation by the fence. Rick knew that with Daryl out hunting, there was no one in the tower but for once he wasn't worried. He felt that he could squint just a little bit and be in a park on any normal, sunny day. If only Lori were here to see it. Carol looked over and saw the far away expression on his face.

"Are you thinking about Lori?" Rick nodded and smiled.

"She would have loved it today. For the first time since Hershel's farm, it feels normal again." Judith started fussing. Carol picked her up from the blanket.

"And what about you sweetheart? Are you enjoying the nice day too?" Judith looked at her and yawned. "Well, that's ok honey," she laughed, "You can sleep if you want to." She lifted the baby to her shoulder and rocked back and forth, humming softly. Rick watched his daughter's relaxed face and smiled as her eyes struggled to stay open for a moment before finally closing. His head turned at the roar of a motorcycle.

"Daryl's back!" Rick got to his feet and walked over to join Glenn and Hershel. There weren't as many walkers at the fence. They took them out easily while Carl opened the gate. When Rick looked at the bike, he saw a large bird tied to the front along with five squirrels.

"Holy shit is that a turkey?" Carl's eyes bugged out of his head and everyone laughed. For once, Rick didn't bother to get on to him about his language. Daryl untied the turkey and held it up proudly.

"Not bad. It's a little scrawny but it'll do. First one I've seen around here." He handed it to Carl. "What do you think? About ten pounds?" Carl raised the bird up and quickly handed it back to Daryl. Axel was near gleeful as he started back to the prison.

"I'm gonna get the water boilin' so we can scald them feathers off." Rick looked at Oscar and Carl.

"Why don't you go see about working on a spit for the fire so we can roast him up tonight?" Carl's face broke out in a grin and even Oscar looked happy. Glenn clapped Daryl on the shoulder.

"Good job man." Daryl rolled his eyes.

"Whatever." Glenn looked at Rick, saw he was suppressing laughter and turned red. Daryl handed Glenn the turkey and the squirrels.

"Go on and take these inside. I'll be there in a bit to gut 'em. I think Axel wants his hands on that turkey. Tell him he screws it up I'll kick his ass." Glenn took the turkey and string of squirrel and headed into the prison. Daryl looked around the yard then knelt by Carol and the baby. He stroked Judith's cheek and she sighed in her sleep. He stood up and walked with Rick.

"Where are the girls?" he asked. Rick pointed down by the water.

"Doin' laundry." Daryl nodded.

"Dani with them?" Rick glanced over at him but Daryl's face was expressionless.

"Yeah, why?" Daryl looked at Carol and motioned with his head for Rick to walk with him. When they were out of earshot, he spoke quietly.

"I think we're gonna have trouble tonight. When I was out in the woods, right after I got that turkey tied up, I heard someone comin'. I hid out in the brush and heard some guys talking about scoutin' us out. I thought they might be just a couple of guys tryin' to find a place to crash but when I finally saw them, there was about ten of them. They were talkin' about Dani like they knew she was here. One of them called the other Cash. Wasn't that one of the guys Dani said…" he didn't finish the sentence but Rick nodded.

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure it was." Daryl frowned and wiped the sweat off his forehead with the back of his hand.

"I thought so. If it had just been the two I'da killed 'em on sight." He paused for a second and looked at the ground. "Merle was with 'em." Rick flinched, looked around and leaned closer.

"Are you sure?" Daryl nodded.

"I saw him. One good hand and the other arm with some knife thing on it." He crossed his arms. "Rick, they've been watchin' us for a while. I followed 'em back to their truck and they headed back off to Woodbury." Rick shook his head. His peaceful day was gone.

"We've got to tell everyone. They have to be ready, especially Danielle." Rick looked towards the water and saw the girls were bringing their clothes back up to the cellblock. He could hear their laughter across the field.

"Daryl, you know she's barely hanging on. She puts on a tough front but she's bottled up a lot over the past week. You even mentioned she's not sleeping well at night plus that stupid stunt she pulled the other day. Seeing those men, knowing what they did to her and the part they played in killin' her daughter. That might very well break her." Daryl nodded.

"I know." He turned and saw her watching him. He turned back to Rick.

"We need to tell Glenn and Hershel first. Figure out what we're gonna do before we say anything to anyone else." Rick agreed and they headed back into the prison.

* * *

"God it's felt so good to have one good, quiet day." Maggie stretched back on the grass, smiling up at the sun. Beth was lying on her back spinning a clover flower in her hand.

"I know. It's so nice out here." She rolled onto her stomach. "I just want to stay here forever." She glanced over at their clothes drying on the rocks.

"Do you think they're dry yet?" Danielle reluctantly got up to check.

"Nope. Not quite." She flopped back down on the grass. "We can go back to forgetting where we are." All three of them laughed. Beth looked over at Danielle.

"So what's with the 'Danielle-Dani' thing you and Daryl have goin' on?" Danielle covered her face with her hands and groaned.

"Would y'all give it a rest? It's no big deal. He said that Danielle didn't sound like a redneck name and I told him people called me Dani before I moved to California." Maggie leaned her head back, looking at her upside down.

"Yeah, but he was calling you 'Dani" the other day until we were heading back and then you were 'Danielle' again." She rolled her head to look at her sister. "It was like when Dad used to get mad at us and he'd use our full names." She lowered her voice. "'Elizabeth Greene you know better than that young lady'." The sisters laughed. Danielle sat up.

"Knock it off you guys. Seriously, there is nothing between me and Daryl." She laid back and covered her eyes with her arm. Maggie rolled over onto her stomach.

"Ok, seriously, we'll stop. We were just giving you a bad time. We're sorry." She suppressed a giggle. "Dani." She snorted and both she and Beth started laughing. Danielle tried to be mad but she found herself joining in. She got to her feet and walked over to check her clothes.

"If y'all want to call me Dani you're free to do so. The name is not exclusive to Daryl Dixon." Beth looked at Maggie with a mock serious expression.

"She used his full name." Maggie sat up.

"I know. He must be in trouble for something." Danielle started folding up her mostly dry clothes.

"I hate you guys. Seriously, I do." She tried to keep a straight face but the three started laughing again. "C'mon. The clothes are almost dry. We can hang them over the second tier rail inside. They'll be dry by morning." Beth groaned.

"Does this mean we don't get to stay here forever?" Maggie got up and pulled her sister to her feet.

"Nope. It's back to the salt mines for you little one." As they folded up their clothes they heard the motorcycle roar up the driveway.

"Guess who's back." Maggie said nudging Danielle. Danielle kicked her with her bare foot. They picked their clothes up, gathered the soap and washboard and started back towards the cellblock. As they got closer, they saw Rick and Daryl talking. Daryl glanced over at her and then turned back to Rick. They spoke a little longer then went back into the prison.

"Something's up." She said, watching them walk away. Maggie frowned.

"You're trying to ruin this day aren't you?" Danielle looked over at her and smiled.

"Sorry. Paranoia attack I guess." She dropped back to help Carol fold up the sheet they had used as a tent for the baby and carried it back inside. The cellblock was quiet. Carol laid Judith down on a bed and the girls climbed up to the second tier to hang up their clothes.

* * *

After a dinner of fresh turkey and canned peas, Rick announced that they needed to discuss a situation. Fear gripped Danielle. She hoped he wasn't going to ask her to leave. She looked over to the stairs where Daryl sat, a worried frown on his face. He had his hands pressed together and he looked extremely agitated. Looking around at Hershel, Glenn and Rick, she thought she could see genuine fear in their eyes.

"While Daryl was out hunting, he across a group of men from Woodbury. Several of them were the ones who attacked Danielle. Merle was with them too." Danielle was shaking and she heard Maggie gasp behind her.

"One of the things they were talking about was coming here to cause trouble tonight. They've been scouting out the prison and they know that Danielle is alive and here." Danielle almost fell over but Glenn helped steady her. Rick continued.

"We're not going to lose anyone else. We're going to lock this place down tonight and see if they show up or if they were all talk. We've got the heavy stuff from the armory. We're going to map out positions so we know what to anticipate if they try getting around the walkers in the back or if decide to cut their way in through the fence. We'll be ready for them."

* * *

The attack was the biggest surprise of all. They didn't try to sneak in the back or cut through the fence. They drove both of their trucks up to the front gate. Merle climbed out of the passenger side of one of the trucks, killed a nearby walker and then began yelling for Daryl.

"Hey baby brother! Get out here and open this goddamned gate!" They started to close the door to lock everyone else in the cellblock when Danielle held the door open and joined them. She took the key out of Rick's hand and locked the door behind her. Daryl called back to her.

"Where the hell do you think you're going?" She pulled her Colt out of her holster and nodded towards the door.

"I'm not going to sit in here and cower like a little bitch." She started towards the door.

"Get your ass out here boy! Bring that big bad sheriff out here too!" His voice sent a cold chill down her spine and she stopped. Rick walked up behind her.

"You don't have to go out there," he said. Danielle took a deep breath, turned around to meet Daryl's eyes.

"Yes I do." She turned back and walked outside. Rick, Daryl, Glenn and Oscar followed behind her. They all walked towards the headlights to meet them. Merle was sitting on the hood of the truck. When he saw Danielle at the front of the group he laughed.

"Well, well, well sweetheart. How's it goin'?" She didn't respond. She was aware that Rick has stepped up on her left and Daryl on her right. She could hear Daryl breathing hard. When she glanced over at him, he looked scared to death.

"Merle, you and your boys need to just go on back to Woodbury." Rick said, raising his gun. Merle turned around and addressed his crew.

"Did you hear that? We need to just go on back to Woodbury." The guys laughed. "I'm sure you understand if I don't until I've had a word with my brother. I mean, it's been such a long time since we saw one another. We have a lot to catch up on." A walker stumbled close to the truck and Merle pulled a gun and shot it.

"You see baby brother, I just don't understand what happened back near Atlanta. There I was, up on that roof, cutting off my own hand, and you don't even care. Who was always lookin' out for you? Who was always there for you?" Daryl wiped the sweat off his face. He was pale and shaking. Seeing him like that pissed Danielle off. She raised the Colt and pointed it right at Merle. Rick immediately put a hand on her arm to stop her.

"Put it down Danielle." Merle jumped off the truck hood and walked to the fence. The guys behind him continued to shoot the walkers to keep them on the outside of the truck barricade.

"Yeah bitch. Why don't you put the gun down before you hurt yourself." He looked back at Daryl. "Now get over here and open the goddamn gate!" Daryl spoke but he couldn't be heard.

"What was that boy? Speak up!" Daryl took a deep breath and glared at his brother.

"Get the hell out of here Merle. I've got nothin' to say to you." Merle smirked at him and turned to address his crew.

"You hear that boys? It sounds like my baby brother finally grew a pair." He backed away from the fence and pointed his blade at Danielle.

"I owe you one bitch. Don't think I've forgotten you. In fact," he turned around and motioned to Cash who pulled a something out of the truck. He set it on the ground. It shuffled forward and Merle walked over to it and pulled the burlap sack off it's head. "The Governor felt it's time for a family reunion!" Danielle gasped.

It was Abigail.

"Oh shit," Glenn breathed. As everyone stood in shock, Danielle lowered her gun and dropped it on the ground. She started to walk towards the gate.

"Abigail? Baby?" She could see her daughter was alive. The Governor had lied to her. She hadn't died after all. She smiled and started to cry. "Oh my god baby. They told me you were dead!" Abigail smiled and walked towards her.

Rick stared at what was left of Danielle's daughter. The little girl had turned and was growling like the other walkers but Rick could see her teeth had been removed and her fingernails had been pulled out. It registered a second too late that Danielle was seeing her daughter, whole and alive. She made it to the fence and tugged on the lock.

"Rick! Toss me the keys! I have to get my baby!" Abigail reached her arm through the fence and Danielle grabbed her hand. Suddenly, she was being pulled away. Daryl had grabbed her and was dragging her back.

"No goddamn it! Let me go!" Abigail stopped smiling and dropped her hand off the fence. Suddenly, Merle Dixon was there pointing a gun at her daughter's head.

"No! Daryl stop him! Don't let him kill her!" She struggled to break free but he wouldn't let go. "Daryl please! Help her!"

Merle pulled the trigger.

Danielle sank to her knees as she saw her daughter fall.

Merle turned around and climbed back into the truck, ordering his crew to head out. As the truck pulled away, he yelled out the window.

"The Governor sends his regards."


	8. Savior

**A/N All characters belong to the writers and creators of The Walking Dead. Except those that arose from my own twisted imagination.**

**Chapter Eight-Savior**

Carol listened to the sound of gunfire start outside. They could hear muffled yelling and more gunshots. Hershel appeared to be praying. When the gunfire stopped, Carol got up and walked to the door and waited. Carl stood up and grabbed the keys.

"I'm going out there."

"No!" Beth grabbed him and Maggie took the keys. Carol kept her eyes on the door. She heard footsteps running outside and Glenn's voice calling for her and Maggie.

Outside, they could see shadows on the ground by the front gate and could just make out a shape beyond the open gate picking up something from the ground.

"Glenn!" Maggie called for him, unable to see him.

"Bring the lantern! Hurry!" Maggie ran back inside to get the Coleman lantern and both she and Carol ran towards the group.

The first thing Carol saw was Oscar walking back through the gate carrying the body of a child. Glenn shut the gate and quickly locked it. The child was a walker and had been shot through the head. Recognizing the picture that Danielle had shown her, Carol knew it was Abigail. As she and Maggie got closer with the light, they could see three people kneeling on the ground. Danielle's back was to them and Rick knelt on one side of her. Carol started to ask where Daryl was when she realized he was kneeling in front of Danielle. One hand was clenched in a shaking fist on his leg and the other was on the back of her head, pressing her forehead to his. Carol could hear him talking to her and knelt beside him.

"I'm sorry Dani. I'm sorry. Please. I'm sorry," He repeated over and over. Hesitantly, Carol touched his arm and he jerked away from her.

"Daryl." When Carol said his name, he looked at her. His eyes were wet and he looked scared.

"Help her." Carol held up the lantern and saw Danielle's face. Her eyes were blank and staring straight ahead. She was breathing rapidly and shaking.

"Danielle? Dani, are you ok?" Carol tried shaking her shoulder but didn't get a response. She looked from Daryl to Rick. "She's in shock. We have to get her inside, now." Daryl stood and picked Danielle up, cradling her head against his chest. She still didn't move. Daryl walked quickly back to the prison with Carol right beside him. Maggie watched them go inside. She felt Glenn's arms around her and turned to hold him tight. After reassuring herself that he was still there, still alive she looked at Rick.

"What happened Rick? What's wrong with Dani?" Rick was visibly shaken and it took him a moment. He motioned towards Oscar, who was covering Abigail's body with his jacket.

"Merle showed up. He brought Abigail with him, like she was a gift to Danielle from the Governor," Rick looked at the body on the ground and caught his breath before continuing. "Only I don't think Danielle saw her as a walker. I think she saw her alive. She ran to the fence and begged me to give her the keys. Abigail reached through the fence for her and Daryl ran over to pull her away. Then Merle walked up to that little girl and put his gun against her head. Danielle was begging Daryl to save Abigail and Merle pulled the trigger. All Danielle saw was her little girl getting shot in the head and dying all over again." Maggie put her hand over her mouth.

"What happened to Daryl? Why was he like that?" Rick ran his hands through his hair and shook his head.

"I don't know. We were all in shock. After Merle and his crew pulled out of here, Daryl started pacing back in forth in front of her, yelling at her to get up. He threw his gun down and tried shaking her but she wouldn't move, wouldn't say nothin'. Then he just dropped down in front of her, telling her he was sorry." They turned as Carl called to Rick. They started back in, all except for Oscar. He sat down beside Abigail's body.

"Y'all go back in there. I'll stay with her so she's not alone. Her momma don't need to see her like this." Rick nodded his thanks to Oscar and the rest of the group hurried back inside.

* * *

Once inside the prison, Daryl refused to take Danielle into one of the cells.

"She gets scared in small places. I ain't putting her in there." He looked at Carl. "Grab one of the mattresses and bring it out here." Carl hurried to do what he was told and with Beth's help dragged it out of the cell. Daryl carefully laid Danielle down and Carol covered her with a blanket. She helped Hershel to the ground so he could look Danielle over. He felt her head, checked her eyes and felt her pulse.

"Her heart's beating fast, too fast. And her breathing is shallow. She needs to come out of this. Keep her warm and try to calm her down. If we don't, she could have a heart attack and die." Daryl shook his head.

"No, that's not happening." He sat beside her and pulled her into his lap. He wrapped the blanket around her and pulled her to him. Carol helped Hershel up and they sat back at the table, watching and praying. Maggie, Rick and Glenn walked in and Carol motioned for them to be quiet as Daryl started talking to Dani.

"I'm sorry Dani. This was my fault. But I'm gonna fix it. I don't know how yet, but it will get dealt with, don't you worry about that. But you can't stop fighting. You're stronger than that. If you quit now, that son of a bitch wins. Just don't quit. Do you hear me? Don't you dare quit." He looked at everyone and didn't know what else to do or what more to say. He wasn't about to lose anyone else so he held her. Carol wiped the tears from her face and Maggie leaned on Glenn. Finally, Danielle blinked and her eyes seemed to focus. She took a deep breath and her face crumbled as she finally let loose all the tears, grief, and anger that she had bottled up for days. She screamed, cried and fought Daryl but he held her until she finally buried her face in his shoulder, held onto him and let everything go. He helped her to her feet, still holding her as she cried. He looked at Carol who walked over and put her hand on Danielle's shoulder. Dani turned and Carol embraced her. Maggie joined them and both women helped her walk to the table. They got water to wash her face and while she was cooperative, she wouldn't speak.

Daryl waited a moment then went outside. He was confused about what was going on in his head. He had never cared what people thought of him before. He was always the white trash punk, Merle Dixon's younger brother. Never expected to amount to anything. A mouthy little shit was what his dad called him, when he'd acknowledge him at all. Just like his brother. But his brother was the one who'd gone to juvie, not Daryl. Daryl had raised himself and he was responsible for who he was now, not Merle. Being around this group, he'd found his purpose and was finally out from under Merle's shadow. But Merle was still there, still telling him what to do, still ordering him around and he was done listening.

He sat down in the dirt, wiping the tears from his eyes with the heel of his palm. He wasn't about to start crying again. He thought about Dani and wanted her to be ok, to be the fighter she had been when she dragged herself through that field of walkers. Carol was the first woman to ever show him any affection and while he cared about her, it was more friendship than anything else. The two women Merle had set up for him years ago so his little brother "wouldn't be no queer" meant nothing to him and he couldn't even remember what they looked like. Danielle was the first woman he'd ever felt anything for and he still didn't know how to process it. He just wanted her to be alright. Hearing a noise, he took out his flashlight and shined it around. He saw Oscar sitting by Abigail's body, got up and walked over to join him.

"How's Danielle?" Oscar asked, looking shaken.

"She's better, I guess." He started to lift the jacket Oscar had placed over the body when Oscar stopped him.

"You don't want to see what they did to her." Daryl looked at him.

"Is it bad?" Oscar nodded.

"That was your brother in charge out there wasn't it?" Daryl nodded. "I had a brother like that once. He was shot dead five years ago robbing a gas station up near Alpharetta." Daryl didn't respond and lifted the jacket off of Abigail. He looked away immediately.

"Ah shit. No."

They had pulled out all of her teeth and had pulled out her fingernails. There were surgically removed pieces of her skin and large needle marks on her arms. The skin on her wrists and ankles were shredded, probably from where they had her tied down while they experimented on her. He covered his mouth and closed his eyes as he couldn't help but imagine what had been done. Oscar glanced at her and quickly looked away.

"Monsters did this to her," he said. "Those people in Woodbury, there's no way they know what the Governor is doin'. People, good people, wouldn't let them do this to a child." Daryl opened his eyes.

"And my brother's one of the ones that did this." Oscar reached over and pulled the jacket back over Abigail's face. Daryl stood, his hands clenched in fists. Oscar looked up at him.

"I'll get her buried in the morning, before y'all get up. Before Danielle can see her." Daryl nodded.

"Good idea. I'm goin' back inside. You need help digging that grave in the morning, you come get me." Oscar shook his head.

"Nah, I can manage one this small. You just take care of things in there." Daryl turned and walked back inside.

* * *

Rick and Hershel watched as the women took care of Danielle. She was still pale but she was no longer sweating and appeared to be breathing steady. Her pulse was still high but not as dangerously high as it had been. She still hadn't spoke.

"Hershel, is she going to be alright?" Hershel shook his head.

"Physically, yes. Mentally, only time will tell on that. It bothers me that she won't speak." They looked back when they heard the outside door close. Daryl was hanging back in the doorway. Rick walked over and put his hand on his shoulder.

"You alright?" Daryl nodded.

"Oscar's gonna bury Abigail tomorrow morning, before Dani can see her. She doesn't need to know what those bastards did to her little girl." Rick looked over at Danielle and then at Daryl.

"Are you ok?" Daryl brushed it off.

"Yeah, I'm fine." He stepped into the room. Carol looked over when he called her name.

"How's she doin'?" Carol shook her head and pulled the blanket higher over Danielle's shoulders.

"She needs to rest. She'll be better in the morning." Carol and Maggie helped her to her feet and walked with her to the landing. Maggie spread out Danielle's bedroll and helped her lay down. She pulled the blanket over Danielle's shoulder and turned to see Daryl walking up the stairs. Maggie stood and passed him on the stairs.

"Talk to her Daryl. She'll listen to you." He nodded and sat down next to Danielle. The silence was broken by Judith's cries. Danielle sat up suddenly, her eyes wide. Daryl put his hands on her shoulders.

"Hey, it's alright." She turned and looked at him.

"Merle killed my little girl." Daryl squeezed her shoulder and she lay back against him. This was definitely outside of his comfort zone but it felt right. And if this was what it took to make her better, he'd do it. He put his arm around her and pulled her to him.

"I know he did. And I'm sorry I couldn't stop it." Dani shifted closer.

"She was already dead when he did it, wasn't she?" Daryl nodded.

"You know she was. She didn't feel a thing." She sat up suddenly and looked at him, anger and pain in her eyes.

"I want them dead. I want them all dead. I want them to hurt like they hurt me and like they hurt Abigail. I want to watch them suffer before I kill them." She started to get up and Daryl pulled her back. He held her chin and forced her look at him.

"You're not goin' anywhere, you hear me? I know what you want to do and trust me, I want to do the same thing right now. The only thing that's keepin' me from goin' to Woodbury and killing every one of those bastards is knowin' that things need to be done right and the right way is to have a plan or we're all dead." Dani reached up and touched his face. He flinched but didn't pull away. She leaned over and gently kissed the corner of his mouth.

"What was that for?" he asked, his voice barely over a whisper. She shook her head and moved over to her side of the landing.

"Good night Daryl."


	9. Lies and Memories

**A/N All characters belong to the writers and creators of The Walking Dead. Except those that arose from my own twisted imagination.**

**Chapter Nine-Lies and Memories**

Andrea stretched rolled over in bed. The sun was shining through the window. She sat up, the sheet pulled around her, and looked for Phillip. The room was empty. She got up, dressed quickly and walked out of the bedroom. As she started down the stairs, she heard voices.

"So they do have her," she heard Philip say. She looked over the railing and down into the living room. She couldn't see the Governor but did see Merle and two of his crew.

"Yeah they have her," Merle confirmed. "Looks like she's part of the family now." One of Merle's boys laughed. Merle turned and frowned.

"What you laughin' at boy? It's your fault we're in this mess in the first place. If you boys weren't so busy thinkin' with your dicks we coulda' wiped them out weeks ago!" Andrea watched the younger, taller man cower in front of Merle and hang his head. Merle waved them to the door.

"Get on outta here! Go do your goddamn jobs for once!" Once they left, Merle turned back to the Governor. Phillip walked into her view and Andrea ducked back out of sight.

"You shouldn't give those boys such a bad time. You were the last one to see her before she took off. You were supposed to keep an eye on her." Merle had a hangdog look on his face.

"I told you she attacked me. Took me by surprise." The Governor laughed.

"Yes I bet you she did." He took a sip of tea. "Did you see your brother?" Merle nodded.

"Ungrateful little bastard wouldn't talk to me. You ask me, the bitch got him pussy whipped." Phillip nodded.

"That's a shame. This would be so much easier to do if I didn't have to put you in this situation. Brother against brother. Funny," he said, chuckling. "That seems to be the history of all important battles of the South." He sat his tea cup down on the counter and appeared to be deep in thought. Merle looked anxious.

"So what do we do now Governor? Want us to make another run at 'em? We can get in through the back side of the prison where the fence is down. My boys got it scoped out. There's some biters but we got enough men…"

"No," Phillip cut him off. "Not just yet. I want to let them get comfortable again, let their guard down. We need to up the patrols on the road. Watch them when they go for supplies, keep an eye on them." He walked over to the staircase and glanced up before continuing.

"We still have the other one, right? Your boys haven't let her escape as well have they?" Merle shook his head.

"We've got her locked up tight. They're not gonna make the same mistake twice."

"Good. Tell your boys that I don't care what they do beyond the wall but I will not tolerate that kind of behavior here. We're trying to rebuild civilization, give people some hope. Word of that kind of thing happening to one of our own people could start making everyone nervous. When people get nervous, that's what starts a revolution."

He walked Merle to the door and Andrea hurried back to the bedroom. She didn't know what was going on. Did Rick's group make it this far? Or had Daryl gotten mixed up with another group, one that was a threat to Woodbury? She'd heard about the escape of the two people who had attacked and robbed a supply team a couple of weeks ago. Their group must have been spying on the wall because a team of ten people had walked right in, shot two sentries and killed three guards before making off with the prisoners and a large cache of weapons. It was a highly coordinated attack and the Governor had told the people that he had discovered information that it was a rogue group of ex-military who were roaming out beyond the walls. He cancelled all supply runs by "civilians" and Merle's group was now in charge of all Woodbury security matters. She definitely wouldn't put it past Daryl Dixon to make it this far, and his tracking skills would be an asset to any group.

She jumped when she heard footsteps coming up the stairs. Quickly she started making the bed, trying to make it appear that she had just woken up. The Governor entered the room and smiled when he saw her.

"Good morning." Andrea returned the smile and walked over to kiss him. This was what she liked. Having a normal life away from running and walkers and worrying where your next meal would be coming from. He looked down at her and brushed her hair from her face.

"I didn't wake you did I?" She shook her head.

"No. I thought I heard Merle's voice a while ago. Is everything alright?" A shadow passed over the Governor's face for a brief moment before he smiled and shook his head.

"Of course. Everything is just fine. Merle was just giving me an update on their efforts to find that crew we've been having trouble with, that's all." Andrea nodded. She wanted to ask about Daryl but she didn't want to let it slip that she'd been listening in. The Governor kissed her again and took her hand.

"Are you ready for breakfast?" She smiled and reached up to stroke his face.

"Of course." He led her downstairs.

* * *

Merle and Cash walked through the halls towards the interrogation room. In front of the door, Travis and Baylor stood waiting. They stepped aside as Merle approached.

"She in there?" Travis nodded. Merle frowned at him.

"You boys haven't been messin' with this one have you?" Baylor shook his head.

"No sir." Baylor opened the door and Merle stepped in. He closed the door behind him.

"Well now," he walked to the end of the table and looked down the prisoner. "I think you've had enough time to cool off. I don't expect you'll want to do anything stupid this time around." He slowly leaned over the table.

"Now, you're gonna tell me everything you know about the group at the prison. And you're gonna do it right quick."

At the other end of the table, Michonne glared at him defiantly.

* * *

Carol woke up early to check on Danielle and found her still asleep and curled up against Daryl with her head on his chest. He was propped up with one arm behind his head, the other wrapped around Danielle, his thumb stroking the bare skin of her shoulder. He was awake, keeping watch over her as she slept. When he saw Carol, he carefully slid out from under Danielle and laid her head gently on her pillow.

"Hey," he said quietly, getting to his feet. Carol walked carefully around Dani and Daryl walked with her down the stairs.

"How's she doing?" Carol asked. Daryl crossed his arms and frowned.

"She's ok. Had a nightmare a couple hours ago but settled right back down." The sun was rising, light filling the cellblock. Everyone would be getting up soon. Daryl started out the door.

"I'm gonna go see if Oscar needs help diggin' Abigail's grave." Carol hurried after him and followed him out the door.

"Daryl, what are you doing?" He looked at her, confused.

"I just told you." Carol shook her head.

"No I mean with Dani. If you really care about her, that's wonderful. But if you're just doing this to help her heal…you're going to hurt her in the long run. Because she does care for you, a great deal. Everyone can see it." She raised her hand to shield her eyes from the rising sun. "I just can't understand why you don't." Daryl frowned and squinted in the bright light.

"Y'all need to be a little less concerned with mine and Dani's feelings and a little more concerned about those sons of bitches over in Woodbury. Why don't you worry about that alright? What they did last night, they were just messin' with us. They were messin' with Dani big time and they got in her head. I ain't about to let them in mine." As he walked away, he called over his shoulder, "But y'all just keep talkin' and gossipin' like a bunch of ol' biddies in church if it makes you feel better." Carol watched him walk down to Oscar, pick up a shovel and finish burying Abigail.

* * *

Hershel recited the Lord's Prayer over Abigail's grave. Rick held Judith in one arm while keeping a hand firmly on Carl's shoulder. He'd had another nightmare about losing the boy. This time, Carl was the walker and Rick was begging for help to save him from Merle. He flinched at the memory. Maggie stood with Glenn, her head on his shoulder. Oscar and Axel stayed behind Hershel, their heads bowed. Oscar tried not to acknowledge the few tears that ran down his cheeks, thinking of his own kids, while Axel wept openly. Beth and Carol stood with Dani, ready to be there for her if she broke down again. Dani stood with her arms crossed staring down and the dirt and rocks that covered the body of her little girl. Flashes of memories went through her head. The first moment she saw her daughter after a long and difficult delivery, her first steps, first birthday, first day of school. Packing her daughter up into the car as they fled the city, ignoring phone calls from her angry ex-husband. Trying to keep Abigail calm as they navigated the roads and the traffic. Teaching Abigail how to shoot and being so proud of how accurate she was. Finding Woodbury…

The memories stopped there. She couldn't allow herself to think of that place at this moment. Those people killed her daughter. The anger that she had for everyone in the town was growing, shutting down the grief and blocking out the memories of her daughter that she wanted to keep seeing. She looked up from the grave and saw Daryl standing by Rick, watching her. He was the one person she wanted by her side at that moment because she knew he understood her. They both grew up poor, both told by society that they were a lower class than everyone else. They grew up learning how to rely on themselves, that no one else was going to do anything for them. They both knew what it was like to be abused by a parent, his physically, hers emotionally. The only real difference was that Dani grew up knowing how to love, thanks to her father and her grandparents. He grew up having every positive feeling quashed by his alcoholic father and that asshole Merle.

Hershel finished the prayer and Carol put her hand on Dani's shoulder.

"You ready to head back?" Dani shook her head.

"No. I want to stay for a bit." Carol nodded and put her arm around Beth, leading her back to the prison. Maggie and Glenn both hugged her, as did Hershel. Axel nodded to her but kept his distance. Oscar wordlessly took her hand in both of his and she stood on tiptoe to kiss him on the cheek and thank him. Rick put his hand on her shoulder as he passed and Carl smiled at her. Soon, it was just her and Daryl left. He walked over to stand beside her. She linked her arm with his and leaned against his shoulder. She waited for him to tense up or pull away but he didn't.

"Thank you for everything." He didn't reply. They stood there like that for a moment.

"I meant what I said. I'm gonna make this right." Dani looked up at him and saw he was staring intently at Abigail's grave. She stood in front of him and forced him to look at her.

"Daryl, this was not your fault. I told you before that what Merle Dixon is, what he does is not a reflection on you. For God's sake Daryl! It's a goddamn miracle that you're _not_ like him! Look at everything you've done for the group. You went out lookin' for Sophia when Shane wanted to give up." He looked surprised. "Yeah, Carol told me that. And you helped keep everyone safe last winter." He shook his head.

"Nah, that was Rick." Dani shook her head.

"Rick couldn't have done it without you. He's a good man, a smart man but you are the one he leans on. All of this," she motioned around the prison, "you have to take credit for a lot of it." She paused, waiting until his eyes finally locked on hers.

"And there's me. Do you get that at all? You saved me last night. I was ready to lay down and die right in that driveway. I lost everything. I had no reason to keep going. Then you held me and you showed me that I do have a reason. It might be stupid and it might be some goddamn romantic notion out of some cheesy movie but I realized that you need me. And I need you too. I know that's hard for you to accept and you'll probably deny it with your last breath but you know it's true." He stared at her and while his jaw was set and his face expressionless, she could see the conflict that was in his eyes. She tried to think of something else to say, something to keep him from running off or shutting her out when he kissed her.

It surprised her so much that she almost didn't respond. His hand gripped the back of her neck so tight it almost hurt. She reached up to touch his face and that's when he pulled away.

"We can't do this, not now." He walked away from her, heading back into the prison. She waited until he was almost inside before following.

In the cellblock, Dani saw that Daryl had grabbed his crossbow and gun and was preparing to head out on his motorcycle. Glenn and Axel went out first to clear the fence and unlock the gate. Dani followed Daryl back outside.

"Where the hell do you think you're goin'?" She asked him, angry at him for running away.

"We need some stuff." She shook her head.

"No we don't Daryl. You know we don't." She swallowed hard and whispered, "Please don't leave because of me."

"I'm not. I'm just gonna go for a quick run, grab a few things we missed and I'll be right back, alright? I promise you, I'm comin' back." He turned and got on his motorcycle and fired it up. Glenn opened the gate for him and then quickly closed it. Dani watched as he disappeared out of sight.

* * *

Daryl tried to keep his head clear. This was not the time to let the mind wander but he couldn't help it. He'd kissed her. He couldn't believe he'd been so damned stupid as to do it. As he rounded a corner, he didn't notice the man hidden in the bushes. The one who'd been waiting for the sound of a car to come from the prison. Daryl didn't see the walker the man pushed out in front of him until the last second and laid his bike down. He felt the burning in his leg as he skidded across the asphalt. He laid there, breathing hard trying to reach for his gun when someone else's gunshot rang out. Daryl heard the walker drop to the ground and footsteps approaching him. Suddenly, Merle's face came into view.

"Why thank you baby brother. You brought me back my bike."


	10. Reunion

**A/N All characters belong to the writers and creators of The Walking Dead. Except those that arose from my own twisted imagination.**

**Chapter Ten-Reunion**

"Dani! Over here!" Daryl turned and motioned for Dani to follow him. He knew Sophia had come this way. He'd spotted her tracks and found her doll. Just as he preparing to climb down the steep hillside, Dani caught up to him and put her hand on his shoulder.

"It's too late. They have her now." Daryl turned and saw Dani's dead, walker eyes staring back at him. He stumbled back and fell down the hill, his arrow impaling his side. As he struggled to get up, a boot stomped down on his chest.

"Wake up you ungrateful little shit!" Daryl struggled with the darkness, tried to open his eyes. The kick came again, straight to his gut and he rolled over onto his stomach, the wind knocked out of him. A hand grabbed his hair and yanked his head back. His eyes finally opened and he saw a bright blur. He closed them again. His head was killing him, as was his leg.

"What the hell…" he heard laughter just near his head.

"Well well well. Sleeping Beauty finally decided to wake up." Merle. It was Merle. He was there. Daryl's head started to clear and he remembered. The accident. He swerved to avoid a walker. Merle was there. He opened his eyes and saw Merle leaning over him.

"Rise and shine you little bastard," he said punching Daryl in the mouth. Daryl leaned over and spit blood. He looked up and finally saw Merle standing in front of him with two other guys with guns, trained right on Daryl.

"Merle, what are you…" he didn't have the breath to finish the question. His ribs hurt. He tried to move his arms but realized they were cuffed behind his back. Merle walked over and hauled him to his feet.

"So where exactly were you headin' baby brother? Were you comin' here to apologize for your lack of hospitality last night?" Daryl glared at him and said nothing. "What's the matter? You gone mute? You sure were a mouthy little shit last night." Daryl laughed.

"You sound just like Dad." Merle backhanded him and then grabbed Daryl's shirt.

"I did more for you than that son of a bitch ever did. Who was always lookin' after you? Who took care of you? That drunken asshole? No. I did. And how do you pay me back? By runnin' off with the sheriff that done cuffed me to the rooftop and left me there to die!" Merle grabbed Daryl by the back of the hair and pulled his head back, holding his blade to his brother's neck. One of the guys behind him stepped forward.

"Merle, the Governor wanted to see him first." Merle stood up and backed away. Daryl's eye was almost swollen shut. His lip was split and there was blood in his hair from the accident. Merle glared at him and then pushed Daryl towards the door.

"Aren't you lucky little brother? You get an audience with the big man himself."

* * *

Dani stood in the tower watching for Daryl to return. It had been three hours since he took off and she was beyond worried. She was mad at herself. She had pushed him too hard, tried to force him to confront his feelings on her terms, not his. With everything going on, with Woodbury, her daughter, Merle, not to mention the goddamn walkers…why did she decide now was the perfect time to try to build a relationship with someone she'd known less than a week?

She heard footsteps coming up the stairs. She turned as Rick walked in.

"Maggie said you were up here." She crossed her arms in front of her and resumed watching the road. "Dani, Daryl does this. He takes off on his own all the time, goes hunting, makes a run. He'll be back soon." She shook her head.

"Something's wrong Rick. He should've been back by now." She turned to face him. "Do you mean to tell me that after what happened last night you're not wondering where he is?" Rick frowned.

"I just thought…" Dani cut him off.

"You didn't think. If you'd thought, you wouldn't of let him take off like he did. You would've sent someone with him." She pushed past him and started down the stairs. He followed behind her.

"Where are you going?" She ignored him and walked straight into the cellblock to grab her Colt and a rifle. She turned to see Rick standing right behind her.

"You're not goin' out there alone to look for him." Dani glared at him.

"If you're not gonna look for him then I am. Something's wrong Rick. He wasn't thinkin' straight when he left. I can't believe you didn't notice it." Rick frowned.

"What makes you say that?" Dani pushed past him to the door and looked back.

"He kissed me. Does that sound like the Daryl Dixon you know?" Rick's stunned expression confirmed her suspicion. "Yeah, didn't think so." She threw open the door and walked out to the cars.

* * *

Daryl was dragged by Cash and Tripp down the hall of the warehouse, the same one where Maggie and Glenn had been kept. Daryl recognized it but wasn't sure exactly where he was in the building. He looked over at the guy on his right.

"You one of them that messed with Danielle that night you done killed her little girl?" The guy looked surprised but covered it with a smirk.

"So what if I was. What you gonna do about it big guy?" Daryl's good eye narrowed.

"You best hope they don't let me outta these cuffs." The guy laughed and opened the door to a room at the end of the hall. He pushed Daryl inside. Despite the pain in his leg, Daryl fought to stay on his feet. No matter what condition he was in, he wasn't going to show weakness to this son of a bitch.

The Governor stood with his back to Daryl, staring at a map on the wall. Merle sat on a chair by the door, watching.

"Thank you Cash you may go." Daryl turned around and looked eye to eye with one of the men that had raped Dani. Cash hesitated a moment when he saw the hate on Daryl's face and Daryl saw fear in the kid's eyes before he closed the door. The Governor turned to face Daryl.

"So this is Merle Dixon's little brother. I've heard so much about you." His jovial tone of voice pissed Daryl off more than anything. It reminded him of every single asshole that had considered him to be ignorant white trash and therefore must be talked down to. He raised his chin up defiantly and glared at the man. This was the guy who had forced Dani into his bed to pay for medicine for her daughter. The guy who had ordered a helpless little girl to be a lab rat and then kept alive long enough to execute her in front of her mother. He wasn't about to say one word to him. The Governor walked over to him and clapped him on the shoulder.

"It's such a shame that I was unable to have both you and Merle on my team. The two of you would have been a powerhouse. Merle tells me you're an expert with a crossbow and an excellent tracker. That's definitely a skill we could have used here." The Governor turned his back on Daryl and walked back to the map. "It really is such a shame. You would have been an asset to this group." Daryl couldn't keep his mouth shut any longer.

"Probably would have expected me to stand aside while you and your crew rape women and kill little girls too." Merle got up and drew back to backhand him but the Governor raised his hand.

"It's unfortunate that you only got to hear one side of the story. True Danielle Robertson and I had…a relationship…while she was here. She sought me out, you understand. There was no force involved there. As to what a handful of young men may have done, well, that's just unfortunate it got out of hand." The Governor pulled out a chair and sat down. "With Danielle's daughter, once she learned Abigail's condition was untreatable with the medicine we have, she gave her consent to allow us to study the effects of the biter virus and it's evolution in children. We have already had a number of people, older people, sick people, allow us to study their reanimation." He paused a moment. "It's quite possible that Danielle had a change of heart after it was too late and I'm afraid that may have broken her already unstable mind." Daryl couldn't believe the bullshit this guy was trying to sell. He was exactly like some of the preachers at those tent revivals his mother used to occasionally drag him to before she died. They would get the crowd worked up and believing in miracles but all Daryl ever saw was a slick actor with a loud voice dancing around on stage while people collapsed at their feet.

"You got an answer for everythin' but you're a liar. You might be able to sell that shit to the people you got livin' here but I ain't buyin' it." The Governor frowned.

"I see that's how it's gonna be then. Well," he stood again and walked to stand right in front of Daryl. "I could just hang you, or shoot you, or feed you to the biter's but where's the fun in that? What lesson could that possibly teach those people that would seek to destroy what we have built here? Hmmm?" He thought a moment then turned to Merle.

"I think it's time to get the arena ready." He smiled at Daryl. "This community loves a good brawl."

* * *

Rick and Oscar joined Dani in going after Daryl. They turned down the road, driving slowly, looking for any clue as to where he may have gone. As they approached the first hairpin corner, Dani asked Rick to stop. She got out of the car and ran to inspect the fresh tire tracks on the road. It looked like whoever it was had swerved to avoid something but there was no clue what that something could have been.

"Daryl must have wrecked. But where's his bike?" Dani wondered to herself. Rick placed his hand on her shoulder.

"I'm sorry Danielle. You're right. I shouldn't have let him leave like that." At that moment Oscar, who had been looking through the overgrown brush on the side of the road yelled for them to come over. He pulled Daryl's crossbow out from the tall grass. Dani shook her head.

"He has to be hurt. He'd never leave that behind." She walked back to the tire tracks and knelt down for a better look. There was a puddle of thick, congealed blood. Walker blood. She looked up at Rick.

"Someone set him up. Daryl had to have swerved to avoid a walker. However did it must've planned it, took Daryl and his bike and then got rid of the other body." They continued to search the grass and finally came across the body of a walker. Dani leaned over and checked the mouth. Its teeth had been removed.

"It was Merle. Shit." Dani kicked at the ground in frustration. "He took Daryl back to Woodbury. Goddammit!" She walked back to the car. Rick and Oscar followed and the three got back in the car.

"How do you know that for sure?" Rick asked as Dani flipped a u-turn and sped back towards the prison.

"One of the things the Governor liked to do was have these arena fights. They'd match up two or three guys to fight until one was left standing. To up the ante, they'd surround the fighters with walkers on leashes. Only a handful of people in the crowd knew they pulled the teeth out to make sure that the danger was almost nonexistent. One of the girls on my supply team, her boyfriend was on Merle's crew that trapped the walkers in pits outside of town." Oscar leaned forward on the seat.

"So what's the plan? We go in there like we did with Maggie and Glenn?" Dani shook her head.

"I'm going in alone." Rick shook his head.

"Hell no. I cannot allow that." They pulled up the driveway and Axel opened the gate. Dani pulled to a stop and jumped out of the car. Rick grabbed her arm to stop her.

"You are not just gonna go walkin' back into that town. Do you think you'll just be welcomed back with open arms?" Dani smiled.

"They have to. Because they sure as shit haven't let out what exactly happened to me or to Abigail."

* * *

Merle walked behind Daryl and uncuffed his hands.

"Now I'm doin' this to prove to you that I'm on your side in this little brother. Don't do anything stupid and I won't have to hurt you no more." Daryl watched him warily and tensed for an attack. Instead, Merle pulled up a chair and sat down in front of him.

"So, those people at the prison. They treatin' you good?" Daryl stared at him, surprised by the question.

"Yeah. They're good people." Merle nodded.

"Yeah. Good people always leave a man behind on a roof to get ate alive by biters." His voice was bitter.

"We went back for you but you'd took off already." Merle smirked.

"You expected I'd just stay up there cryin' like a little bitch?" Daryl stared at his brother.

"What happened to you Merle? Even with everything you've done in your life, you'd never of stood by and watched a little girl get killed." Merle shrugged.

"Wasn't my kid." Daryl shook his head in disgust. Merle leaned over to him. "And she wasn't yours neither. You're more upset about that dead little girl and her bitch mother than you are your own kin. Your own flesh and blood." Daryl glared at Merle.

"If this is how you are," Daryl said slowly, "then you ain't my brother. Not no more." Merle's jaw twitched. He slowly got to his feet and walked towards the door.

"If that's the way you want it baby brother, that's fine by me. It'll just be a shame to watch you die." Merle walked out of the room and slammed the door, locking it behind him.


	11. Blood

**A/N All characters belong to the writers and creators of The Walking Dead. Except those that arose from my own twisted imagination.**

**Chapter Eleven-Blood**

Rick, Maggie, Oscar and Glenn watched Dani as she worked out her crude map of Woodbury. They would be going in the same way as before, through the woods, and would position themselves around the town, ready to strike right after nightfall. That part, they could do. It was Dani's idea of trying to go in alone that Rick had completely nixed.

"No. I don't care what you say. I'm not lettin' you go back in like that. It's too dangerous." Dani glared at him.

"Rick, I know what I'm talkin' about. They'll have to let me back in…" Rick cut her off.

"We're not discussing this anymore, alright? Now look, you can either do what I say or you stay here, you understand?" Dani raised her chin in defiance and looked him square in the eye.

"Fine. We'll do it your way." Something about the way she said it made Rick doubt she would honestly go along with them. He put his hand on her shoulder and she looked away.

"I know you're worried and I know you're scared. But we have to do this the right way. What did Daryl tell you last night, huh? That we need to follow a plan. And the plan you have, there's no way of controlling it. For all we know, you walk up to that wall and Merle or one of his boys puts a bullet in your head. What would that accomplish? Nothing. And how do you think Daryl would react knowing that you did something that stupid?" Dani finally met his eye.

"This is my fault Rick. I'm the reason he took off like that." Rick squeezed her shoulder and stepped back.

"There's no sense thinkin' like that now. We have one thing to do and that's to save Daryl and get him back here before those bastards know we've got him." He picked up a gun and held it out to her. "You take this only if you're gonna listen and follow orders. Otherwise, you can stay here and wait for us to get back." Danielle pursed her lips and took the gun. Rick nodded at her and looked at the rest of the group.

"Alright. Let's get going."

* * *

Daryl fought to stay awake in the room after Merle had left him. He wasn't sure what he was seeing was real or if he was dreaming again. He kept seeing and talking to people in the room with him. The Governor. Merle. His father. Rick. Glenn. T-Dog. Carol. Oscar. Hershel. Jim. Dani.

Dani came to him again and again. Knelt beside him and took his hand. She gently touched his hair and pressed her forehead against his. He could feel her breath on his face.

"It's ok Mountain Man. You just hang on. We're comin', you hear me? We're comin' for you. But you have to keep fightin'. I didn't give up on you. Don't you dare give up on me." He could feel the hand on his face. Feel her lips on his forehead. And then she was gone. He opened his eyes and struggled with the darkness. This time, he could see someone in the shadows. Someone real.

"Dani," he whispered. "Where are…" The person quickly moved over to him and knelt beside him. They checked his head and then helped him to his feet. He struggled to focus on their face. When he did, he saw things clearly for the first time since meeting with the Governor.

"You. What the hell…" Michonne cut him off.

"No time for that. We've got to get out of here." She put his arm over her shoulder and started walking him out the door. He blinked in the bright light and almost stumbled over a body on the floor. Michonne held him up and kept him walking.

"I slit their throats. They took my sword." She raised her hand and held up a wicked looking hunting knife glistening with blood. "This is all I've got now. If you see a gun, you best grab it." He nodded and pushed away from her, determined to walk on his own. He took two steps and fell to his knees, dizzy. She tried to help him up but he brushed her off.

"I ain't no cripple. I can do this my goddamn self." Michonne pursed her lips and hauled him to his feet.

"We don't have time for this macho bullshit. If you want out of here, you best let me help you. They'll be coming back for you soon. I heard them talkin' when they brought you in. They're going to set you up in that arena, let those walkers feed on you while everyone watches. They're gonna make an example of you and then take you back to the prison after you turn and set you loose." Daryl stopped and pulled away from her and limped quickly back to the body they had just passed. He knelt down and picked up the assault rifle, checked the magazine and got back to his feet. His eyes were cold.

"Let's go if we're doin' this." Michonne nodded and they made their way to the front of the building. Michonne was worried about the lack of security they had encountered.

"They only had four guards for two people. That makes no sense. Unless that means they're expecting the attack to come from the outside, not in here." Daryl leaned back against the wall. His vision was not improving. In fact, he kept seeing double. He could deal with the pain in his leg but he couldn't do this if he couldn't see. Michonne turned and saw him fading.

"You're not gonna make it if you can't pull it together. And I'm getting out of here this time. I'm not waitin' on someone who can't fend for themselves. I did that last time and that's how I got caught." She ducked down as someone passed outside. Daryl watched her.

"What do you mean last time?" Michonne checked the window and ducked back down on the floor.

"Last time, when y'all got your people out, I went lookin' for the Governor. I ended up followin' your brother to his place and found out why it was so easy to get in here. There were about fifteen of his guys in there, drinkin', doing lord knows what. He left the door open and I watched him drag a guy out of the back room, yellin' at him that he let y'all get away. They loaded up and took off after you, didn't even see me. I went to follow but I heard crying in the apartment. I walked in and found a woman tied up on the bed, half naked, beaten, barely conscious." Daryl flinched as he realized she was talking about Danielle. "I cut her free, got her dressed and tried to help her out. I figured, she'd do better with your people, not these bastards. But she couldn't walk and she kept muttering a name, Abigail I think. We got caught right beyond the wall. They took my sword. I don't know what happened to her. They probably killed her." Daryl pulled himself up.

"She got away. Made it to the prison. She's safe." Michonne nodded.

"Is her name Dani? That the one you was talkin' to back there?" Daryl didn't answer. Instead he peeked out the window. He could see two people across the street but no one on their side.

"We're clear." Michonne nodded and opened the door. She slipped out first with Daryl right behind her. They stayed close to the building, ducking quickly into a nearby doorway. Michonne pointed towards the wall where five men stood guard. Daryl swore and looked out of the doorway towards the street. He remembered an alley leading behind the building. He motioned for Michonne to follow and they quickly made it to the alley. Once there, Daryl's leg buckled and he went down. He gritted his teeth tried to stand but his leg couldn't support his weight. Michonne, frustrated, ran to the end of the alley to check their access to the wall. When she returned, Daryl was walking but holding on to the wall for support. Michonne shook her head.

"Even if you make it over the wall, the walkers in the woods will be all over you." Daryl glared at her.

"Then go. I ain't askin' you to stay. I can make it on my own." Michonne pursed her lips.

"Yes I can see that." She walked over and put his arm around her shoulder. "Let's go." Just as they made it to the back of the building, an explosion dropped them to the ground. Michonne was wide eyed.

"What the hell?" But Daryl recognized the sound.

"Flash grenades. Rick's here." He forced himself to his feet and limped back towards the street. Michonne quickly caught up to him.

"Where are you going?" Daryl didn't stop but fought against the pain in his leg to keep upright.

"Gonna let them know I'm here and provide some cover fire." He made it to the street and ducked back as two of the Woodbury guards ran towards the warehouse. He looked back out, holding his rifle at the ready. On the wall, he saw a figure firing into the crowd. Two more people were kneeling on the ground, also returning fire from the Woodbury guards. Then he saw Rick come out of the warehouse under a cloud of smoke. The figure on the wall stopped firing and yelled to Rick.

"Where is he?" It was Dani. Shit. What was she doing here? He couldn't hear Rick's response as another blast of gunfire rang out. He stayed low and moved as quickly as he could manage towards Rick. He heard Michonne behind him but didn't look back. He could see Maggie and Oscar.

He didn't know Merle was behind him until his brother hauled him to his feet by the neck.

* * *

After fighting through the hordes of walkers to get to the Woodbury wall, Dani was afraid they would be too late. At the wall, it was easy to see that Woodbury hadn't learned their lesson. Rather than spreading out along the wall, the guards were clumped together, leaving large spans of the wall unprotected. Seeing this from the outside, Dani wondered how they managed to keep the walkers out.

Rick gave the orders and everyone rolled out to their positions. Dani hauled herself up into the tree nearest the wall. She crawled out on the furthest branch and dropped down quietly onto the ground. She felt the shock through her knee and she could have kicked herself for being that stupid. She looked over and saw Oscar positioning himself on an old bus. She saw Rick, Maggie and Glenn head into the warehouse and she held her breath. This was going down. She could hear her heart pounding in her ears.

She jumped when the flash grenade went off. Seeing movement on the ground, she climbed up on the bus and told Oscar to head down to the other end. She waited until she saw the first person with a raised gun, aimed and fired a shot through their head. Both she and Oscar traded gunfire with the guards until Maggie and Glen ran from the warehouse. They both crouched down by the bus and returned fire. Another smoke grenade exploded and Rick ran from the warehouse…without Daryl. She stood, knowing as she did it she made herself vulnerable but she almost didn't care.

"Where is he?" she called to Rick. She dropped back down as another burst of gunfire came from the Woodbury side. Rick made it behind the bus and climbed up to join her.

"He wasn't there. I'm sorry Dani but we may be too late." Danielle shook her head.

"No, he's here. He's just somewhere else, that's all." Rick fired on another guard.

"There were four dead bodies in there. Throats were slit." Danielle didn't respond. Daryl wasn't in there. They didn't know where he was. They were pinned down by the guards and the only way out was back to the woods. Suddenly, she saw a figure half walking, half crawling down the street. In the light of the flames used as street lamps, she could see it was Daryl. He disappeared back into the smoke. She pointed him out to Rick who jumped down from the bus and started to make his way to Daryl.

That was when the smoke cleared and Danielle could see Merle Dixon holding Daryl in a chokehold.

"Hold your fire!" He ordered his crew. The silence was almost unbearable. Merle walked Daryl towards Rick, who had stepped forward, hands raised.

"Merle, we don't want any trouble with this town." Merle laughed.

"Don't want trouble? This is the second time you've come in here with guns, killin' innocent people." Dani could see the Governor come out of a building with that blonde woman, Andrea. The Governor quickly started walking towards them. Dani got him in her sight and prepared to drop him the second he got in range. Rick kept trying to reason with Merle but the man wouldn't let go of Daryl. Suddenly, as Dani watched, a woman ran from the shadows and stabbed a knife through Merle's neck. He fell to the ground and Rick threw another flash grenade as he ran to grab Daryl. Dani focused back on the Governor, saw him raise his gun and she took the shot. He dropped to the ground and both Dani and Oscar hurried to help Rick with Daryl. The woman who stabbed Merle followed behind them. Dani could hear the guards behind them and couldn't even look at Daryl until they had hauled him over the wall. She heard gunfire and then Maggie and Glenn joined them. The group ran for the woods, heading for the car. They didn't know how long it would take for the crew from Woodbury to catch them but they weren't about to stay around to find out.

* * *

Daryl fought against the dizziness and pain and focused on trying to keep Merle from choking the life from him. He could see Rick and he could hear Merle's voice but he couldn't make out the words. Searching the wall, he saw Danielle. She had her gun trained on a target behind him. Just as he was about to blackout, Daryl felt a warm liquid pour over his head. He fell to the ground and was quickly helped to his feet by Rick. He heard another gunshot and then was being hoisted over the wall by Oscar and Rick. He couldn't see Danielle. He could hear voices around him but couldn't make them out. He closed his eyes.

He felt arms around him and jumped.

"Hey, you're ok," Dani's voice whispered in his ear. "We made it." Daryl opened his eyes and could see the night sky out the window of the car. He reached up and grabbed Dani's hand that was on his chest.

"You're real, aren't you?" He asked. She squeezed his hand.

"I'm real. You're ok." He relaxed against her.

* * *

Andrea had frozen when she saw Rick. Then she saw Merle holding a badly beaten Daryl. She was so confused. The Governor had told her that the ex-military group was attacking again but Rick's group did not fit that category. Then she saw Michonne run up behind Merle and stab him in the throat. Before Andrea could react, one of the women fired a shot at the Governor. As the woman jumped to the ground, Andrea could see it was Danielle. The woman with the little girl who had died from pneumonia. The Governor had said she was in seclusion, being taken care of for extreme depression and a suicide attempt following the death of her daughter. Now it seemed she was with Rick's group. She didn't have time to process what this meant when she realized Phillip was on the ground.

Andrea ran to him and rolled him over. The bullet had caught the corner of his eye but appeared to have just grazed him. She called over two of Merle's crew.

"Take him to the infirmary, now!" The guys carried the Governor, who was now moaning, over to the infirmary. Andrea walked over to Merle. He was still alive, trying to talk though his mouth was filled with blood. He grasped blindly in the air with his good hand and Andrea took it. Merle met her eyes and for the first time since the first night they were raided, Andrea saw compassion and fear in his eyes. He mouthed "_Daryl_" and Andrea nodded.

"Daryl is fine. Rick's got him now." Merle seemed to relax, closed his eyes and took one last breath. After he was gone, Andrea looked up at the group of men standing around her. One of the guys, Cash, knelt down by Merle.

"Is Merle dead?" Andrea nodded. "The Governor?" She shook her head.

"I think he'll live." She looked from Cash to the others. "What happened here? Why was Daryl here? And Michonne? I don't understand." No one spoke. Andrea stepped back when she felt Merle's hand twitch. She watched as his eyes opened, his lips curled back in the snarl of a walker. As he tried to get up, to reach for her, Cash put his boot on Merle's shoulder and shot him in the head. Merle was quiet once again. Cash knelt back down.

"That happened quick. Quicker than the others. Maybe this thing is getting' stronger." Andrea didn't answer. She was numb and she wanted answers. She got to her feet and headed to the infirmary to check on the Governor.

* * *

Back at the prison, Hershel checked Daryl's wounds. His leg was badly scraped, probably from getting pinned under the motorcycle. His jeans had probably saved him from further damage. Hershel suspected Daryl had torn a ligament or muscle in his knee and wrapped it tightly in a compression bandage. His head though was another story. Hershel knew right away he had a concussion and had ordered him to stay awake but in bed. Daryl tried to argue with him but Dani had kept her hand on his chest.

"Daryl, you stay down. You're hurt. We're gonna need you so you need to just rest and get better, understand?" He nodded, winced at the pain the slight movement brought, and laid back down. Carol brought in a pan of water and some rags. She patted Dani on the shoulder.

"I thought you might want to get him cleaned up." Carol turned and left with Hershel, leaving Dani and Daryl alone in the cell. Daryl watched her face as she cleaned Merle's blood from his face and hair.

"You don't have to do this if it bothers you." She paused and looked at him.

"A little blood don't bother me." She rinsed the rag and brought it back to his face. He grabbed her hand and stopped her.

"I mean sitting in this cell. I know you don't like small places." Dani smiled, looked around and shrugged.

"I can stand it if you can." She put his hand down and continued to clean his hair. "Now you just hush and let me get you taken care of, alright?" He closed his eyes and Dani immediately made him open them.

"None of that now. You can't sleep anymore until Hershel gives the ok." Daryl snorted.

"You know he's an animal doctor right? Told us himself. He's never been to med school." Dani was surprised but shrugged it off.

"I'm not gonna start questioning everything now. He's the only one with more experience than basic first aid so he's the goddamn trauma surgeon so far as I'm concerned." She finished cleaning off the blood and carried the pan and the rags out of the cell. When she returned, he was starting to doze off again.

"Daryl," he opened his eyes. "Dammit Daryl, what am I gonna have to do to keep you awake?" He smiled.

"Just keep talking. When I was in that room, I kept talking to people who weren't there. You were the only one that seemed real. And I kept going because you told me too." She took his hand and squeezed it.

"Daryl I'm so sorry about pushing you yesterday…" He shook his head slightly.

"Don't." Dani's eyes grew wet and she quickly brushed away the tears.

"It won't happen again Daryl. I promise." Daryl frowned and squeezed her hand again.

"Dani, I was stupid. I shouldn't have taken off like that, especially knowin' Merle was probably gonna be around." She reached up slowly and touched his face. He didn't flinch and his eyes never left hers. She leaned over and kissed him softly on the lips. When she pulled back, he reached up and cupped her face in his hand.

"I ain't runnin' from you anymore," he told her as he brought his lips back to hers.


	12. Trapped in a Cage

**A/N All characters belong to the writers and creators of The Walking Dead. Except those that arose from my own twisted imagination.**

**Chapter Twelve-Trapped in a Cage**

Andrea closed the door to the infirmary and walked quietly towards the bed where the Governor lay. The nurse was looking at his eye and he was very agitated.

"I'm fine. I need to get home." The nurse held him firmly on the bed, her lips pursed in annoyance.

"Governor, you were just shot. Your eye has suffered permanent damage and you will likely never see out of it again. What you need to do is lie still and let us take care of you." He continued to argue until he saw Andrea.

"Andrea, are you ok?" She stepped into the room. He held out his hand to her and she took it. He was shaking.

"I'm fine. But…I have bad news. We lost Merle." A dark shadow passed over the Governor's face.

"Did you see Danielle Robertson? Did you see that she shot me?" Andrea frowned. She had not expected him to bring this up.

"Yes I did. Phillip, you said she was being taken care of, that she was suicidal." He closed his good eye and sighed.

"This is my fault Andrea. I was trying to keep people calm. Abigail's death came as such a shock to everyone and Danielle was so well liked. The night Abigail died was the night the town was attacked. We didn't even realize it until the next day when we discovered Danielle had disappeared. We think she was kidnapped. We've been looking for her ever since. Seeing her tonight was such a shock. I just wonder what's been done to her. It was like seeing that newspaper heiress…what was her name?"

"Patty Hearst." The Governor nodded.

"Yes, that's the one. It has to be a form of Stockholm syndrome." Andrea could hear desperation in his voice, almost as if he was willing her to believe him. She wanted to. She wanted to believe that her safe haven and the man who had invited her to his bed were real. But there were cracks in her resolve.

"I knew one of the shooters. Rick's a good man and definitely not ex-military. And Merle's brother Daryl. And Michonne. I don't understand why they were…" The nurse cut her off.

"I'm sorry, but the Governor needs his rest. You can talk to him more tomorrow." Frustrated, Andrea leaned over to kiss Phillip and allowed the nurse to escort her out the door.

Cash and Tripp were waiting for her, along with several of their crew. Cash glared at her. She never did trust him. He seemed like the type that would hurt you just for the joy of hurting you, like he got off on it.

"You tell 'im 'bout Merle?" Andrea nodded and started to pass them but Tripp stepped in front of her.

"We heard ya in there askin' questions. Why don't you just mind your business and let us do the thinkin' 'round here?" Andrea couldn't resist the sarcasm.

"If we left the thinking up to you all, nothing would ever get done." Cash grabbed her arm.

"You're sassy. We don't much like sassy women." Andrea pulled her arm out of his grip.

"Touch me again and you'll be discussing it with the Governor. Why don't you go protect this town? It seems you've had trouble doing that lately." Cash's jaw twitched but he motioned for the boys to let her pass.

When Andrea got back to her apartment, she locked the door and wedged a chair under the doorknob. Something wasn't right and she was going to find out what was going on.

* * *

Around five AM, Hershel checked on Daryl and decided that it would be ok if he slept for a few hours. His headache had dulled slightly and he was no longer dizzy. Hershel also ordered Danielle to bed. Carol volunteered to sit with Daryl to keep an eye on him. Reluctantly, Dani got up from the bed and stumbled to her own bedroll on the landing. Daryl adjusted his pillow to sit up a little higher.

"Damn. Now that I'm allowed to sleep, I don't know if I can." Carol smiled.

"Are you feeling any better?" Daryl nodded.

"Did Dani go to sleep?" Carol nodded and leaned over to check the bandage on his head.

"I think she was out before her head hit the pillow. You need to get some sleep too. Don't worry about Danielle. Now that you're back, she'll be fine." When she sat back and his face came back into the light, Carol saw his eyes were wet. "Are you ok?" Daryl quickly ground the tears away with the heel of his hand.

"It's kinda stupid to be cryin' over a brother who just kicked the shit outta you ain't it?" Carol shook her head.

"I don't think so. You loved Merle. Even after everything he did you still wanted to be back with your brother. After everything Ed did to me, for all those years, what he tried to do to Sophia…I still mourned his death. I was glad he was dead, guilty that I felt that way and sad that I lost someone I loved." She remembered being disgusted with herself over feeling the satisfaction of driving the pick ax through his head over and over…and the sense of relief that he would never again touch her or her daughter. Daryl adjusted the sheet and stretched out his injured leg. Carol got up from the bed, leaned over and kissed his forehead.

"Daryl, try to get some sleep. We can talk more tomorrow if you need to, alright?" He nodded and slid back down on the bed, turning away from her.

* * *

Rick stood in the guard tower watching the rising sun. Glenn had offered to keep watch with him but Rick had said no. He needed some time to think about everything that had happened. Daryl was hurt pretty bad, Merle was dead and Michonne was back. He needed to talk to her and find out what had happened in Woodbury.

After the sun was up, Rick returned to the cellblock. Maggie was sitting at the table feeding Judith. Rick laid his gun down and sat next to them, smiling at his daughter.

"How's everything down here?" Maggie set the bottle down and propped Judith up on her shoulder to burp her.

"Everything's fine. Dad just checked Daryl's knee and it looks like he didn't tear anything, just banged it up real bad. He should be fine in a week or so but dad ordered him to stay down for a couple of days so Daryl's already in a mood." Rick smiled.

"Nice to know he's feeling better. How about Michonne?" Maggie shrugged.

"I think she's still sleeping. I haven't seen her yet. Carol crashed out right after Dad checked on Daryl. I think Dani's awake. Beth and Carl are out in the garden. Oscar and Glenn went to check the generator fuel level. Oh, and Axel is fixing something in the kitchen. I'm not sure what and I'm almost afraid to ask." She started to rise with the baby.

"Want me to take her?" Maggie shook her head and smiled.

"I'm gonna take her in to see Daryl. See if that will stop his bitching." Rick laughed.

"Good luck with that." Maggie rolled her eyes and left for the cells. Hershel passed by her and sat at the table with Rick. Hershel looked exhausted and rubbed his face with his hands. Rick leaned towards him, concerned.

"Hershel, are you alright?" Hershel nodded.

"I'm fine. I'm just gettin' too old for these late night runs of yours." Rick smiled apologetically.

"Sorry about that Hershel. I think things should be calm for a few days at least. How's Daryl?" Hershel looked over his shoulder and then leaned in closer to Rick.

"He has a concussion. To be honest, it's a miracle he's still alive. He hit his head when he took his bike down. There's a possibility he could have a skull fracture and we might not know it yet. If he does, there could be bleeding on his brain that could cause a clot and, to be honest Rick, there's nothing we can do if that happens. We'd just have to wait and see." Rick nodded but felt the blood drain from his face and his skin go cold. They needed Daryl. If something happened to him, if he died, Rick didn't know if the group could function.

"But he could still be fine, right? He might just have a concussion and that's all. Right?" Hershel nodded.

"It's possible. Given his stubbornness and hard ass nature, he might very well will himself healed. He could also push himself too hard and make whatever injury he does have worse. We need to make sure he stays put." Hershel looked over his shoulder again and lowered his voice even further.

"That's why I told him what I did about his knee. I don't want him up and around for at least another forty-eight hours. That way, I can keep an eye on his head injury. His knee is swollen badly but he could definitely walk on it now, with that bandage. If he finds out he can get out of that bed, you know he'll take off and do something stupid." Rick thought on that a moment and shook his head.

"I don't think Daryl would do that to Danielle again. I think we need to talk to her and let her know what's going on. I'm sure she could convince Daryl…"

"No, I do not think that's wise," Hershel interrupted. "That girl has not recovered from the loss of her daughter. She barely pulled out of that and she only did because she loves Daryl. If she loses him, I think she'll be gone for good. He's her strength and the only thing that's keeping her together right now." Hershel paused as Axel entered the room, carrying a steaming carafe of coffee and a sheath of Styrofoam cups under his arm. He was grinning proudly.

"I finally found the percolator! We've got a whole fifteen pounds of coffee, we just didn't have no means of brewin' it. I've missed my mornin' cup of coffee for a long time. That percolator was stuffed in the back of the cabinet. Found a tea kettle too. Might be better for boilin' water." He set the carafe down and poured himself a cup of coffee that smelled a bit like mud. Rick and Hershel watched as he took a sip and almost choked. Axel blinked, looked at the cup and smacked his lips. "That'll put hair on your chest." He took another sip and walked outside. Both Hershel and Rick eyed the carafe with caution.

"I gave up coffee when we went on the run. I don't see no reason to start drinkin' it now," said Rick. Hershel nodded.

"Amen to that."

* * *

Dani took a cold shower and washed her hair. She hadn't had a chance to do that for a few days. Even though the water was like ice, it didn't bother her like it had the first time she'd taken one. She quickly got dressed and dried her hair, pulling it up into a pony tail and checked her reflection in the mirror. The bruises on her face were gone, except for the dark circles under her eyes from not sleeping.

When she got back into the cell area, she saw Maggie leaving Daryl's cell with Judith. Maggie looked at Dani and smiled, rolling her eyes.

"Would you go talk to him? He's being impossible." Dani suppressed a smile as Daryl's voice rang out from his cell.

"I wouldn't be so impossible if y'all would let me outta this goddamn cage!" Dani stuck her head in the doorway and looked at him, trying to keep the amusement and relief off of her face. His face was scrunched up in annoyance and he looked like his old self.

"What are you complainin' about?" she teased as she walked in. She sat on the bed. "I get to stay in bed with you all day." She couldn't resist a smile. His face relaxed and he gave her a partial smile.

"Stop it." She shook her head no and leaned over to kiss him. When she sat back up he put his hand on her leg. "You look nice. You didn't have to get all cleaned up just to sit inside all day, if that's what you were plannin' on doin'." He pulled himself up higher on the bed. Dani took the pillow off the top bunk and put it behind his head.

"How are you feeling?" His eye was swollen and an ugly purple but at least he could see out of it again. His bottom lip was cut and he had a bruise on his cheek. He had a few bruises on his chest but no broken ribs.

"I'm feelin' fine. I'd feel a helluva lot better if they'd let me get up and move around. You're not the only one that doesn't like sleepin' in these things. You can't move in here."

"I could check with Hershel about setting you up on the perch if you want to. I'm sure that would be ok." Daryl shrugged.

"I just don't like bein' fussed over, you know? I can take care of myself. Been doin' it my whole damn life." His eyes were suddenly sad. She took his hand.

"Do you want to talk about Merle?" Daryl looked at her and then looked away.

"Why would you want to do that? After everything he did to you, you don't want to listen to me cry over his sorry ass." She put her hand on his cheek and forced him to look at her.

"Daryl, I don't care. He was your brother and he was the one that took care of you, raised you, for better or worse. You have the right to mourn him, regardless of what he did." He looked her in the eye.

"When your mother died, did you cry over her?" Dani thought about it.

"No, I don't think I did. But I hadn't seen or spoken to her for three years when she had the stroke. Meemaw kept tryin' to get me to come back out and mend fences but I wouldn't do it. I was in California and finally free of her bitching. But she was never a mother to me. She was just the woman who happened to give birth to me and drove my daddy to an early grave. I didn't fly back to Louisiana until the summer after she died to help Meemaw and Granddad clean up the trailer. It was more of a relief that she was finally gone but I hated her. Never felt any love from her, ever." Daryl was quiet and looked away. Dani watched him a moment and then got up. Daryl turned quickly to look at her, a worried frown on his face.

"Where are you goin'?" She leaned over and kissed him. It was getting so much easier to do that and it thrilled her that he didn't pull away from her touch.

"I'm going to talk to Hershel about movin' you out of here. I'll be right back."

* * *

Michonne lay in her cell on the second tier, listening to the conversation below. She knew the truth about Merle Dixon. That he had helped his brother and her escape that night. After they had brought Daryl in, Merle had come to her and kicked his crew out of the room. He told her that he needed to get Daryl out alive and laid out the plan. He would uncuff Daryl and leave him in an unlocked room. He left Michonne's room unlocked as well. He made sure that there were only four guards that Michonne could easily take out. Merle probably didn't count on Rick's rescue crew coming in when they did. She hadn't asked why he did any of it and she figured he'd probably turn on them in an instant, which is why she had decided to kill him.

But she was going to keep that information to herself. She also wasn't sure if she was going to tell Rick about the Governor's plan for attacking the prison and turning it back over to the walkers or about Andrea living in Woodbury. Michonne didn't act on impulse, everything she did she thought about and planned. It's what had kept her safe over the past year. She was going to stay low, stay quiet and see whether the group was ready to defend itself. If it was, then she would stand with these people and defend the prison. If the group wasn't ready, then she was going over the fence and would be back on her own. She would do like she had suggested to Andrea. Head to the coast, maybe find an island. Live the rest of her life not thinking about being eaten alive every day.

She looked at her knife and thought that she should try sneaking away back to Woodbury and steal back her katana. She was sure the Governor had it on a trophy wall in his house. She thought she might do it later that day, while he was surely either dead or recovering from a gunshot wound. Plus, the town wouldn't be expecting anyone to return so quickly. Michonne knew there was a hole in the prison fence that she could get through and she could definitely make it back to Woodbury on foot. Plus, she wanted to find out what the Governor's real plan was, especially now that his lead henchman was dead.

Michonne waited until she heard the outside door shut and quickly left the cellblock. Danielle was in Daryl's cell, her back to Michonne. Neither Dani nor Daryl noticed her pass by. Outside, Rick and Hershel were walking down towards the garden with the two girls and the little boy. Michonne quickly headed through the inner gate and slipped through the cut in the fence. After making sure the fence was secure, she headed quickly for the woods.

No one noticed that she was gone until Carol woke up two hours later.


	13. Good Night

**A/N All characters belong to the writers and creators of The Walking Dead. Except those that arose from my own twisted imagination.**

**Chapter Thirteen-Good Night**

Rick ran his hands through his hair, clearly agitated.

"Someone had to see where she went." He looked over at Daryl and Danielle sitting on the stairs. "You didn't see her leave? Didn't hear her, nothing?" Dani shook her head and Daryl frowned.

"She always moved like a goddamned cat. I forgot she was even here." Daryl paused and thought for a second. "You know, I still don't know how we got out like we did. It was like it was set up."

"What do you mean 'set up'?" Asked Maggie. Daryl nodded at Glenn.

"Merle left you taped to a chair and set a walker on you right?" Glenn nodded.

"Right. There was no way he expected me to make it out alive." Daryl nodded at Maggie.

"You were tied up too?" Maggie thought for a moment.

"For most of the time, yeah I was. At the very least the door was locked."

"That's what I'm sayin'. Merle uncuffed me. Told me it was proof he was on my side. Now I was out of it but I remember hearing the door lock when he left. So how did Michonne get in to get me out? How did she even know I was there in the first place?" He looked around the room, frustrated.

"Come on, you have to see it. Only four guards for two prisoners, especially one like her? Obviously not that bright or she never could've snuck up on 'em to slice their throats. And she came after me to get me out. It makes no sense unless she was told to do it. She said that was how she got caught last time, helping someone out." He looked back at Danielle. Her eyes widened.

"Oh my god. She got me out of Merle's apartment." She put her hands over her face and squeezed her eyes shut. She had tried so hard to block out what had happened and the memories were coming back.

"Danielle?" Daryl's voice cut through the images in her head and brought her back.

"I remember," she whispered. "She cut me free. She helped me out of there. I can't remember much after that." She was visibly shaking and her eyes were staring into the distance, obviously remembering that night. Daryl reached over and touched her leg. She jumped, the touch pulling her back into the present.

"Hey," Daryl said quietly. "You're ok now, alright?" She nodded and her face hardened as she fought to push the memories out of her head. Rick and Daryl exchanged a look and Rick cleared his throat.

"This is why we needed to talk to Michonne. I've got a feeling that she knows a helluva a lot more about Woodbury than any of us. She called the Governor out the first day she was here. She could see what he was like, what was goin' on in that town. He's got something planned for us and I'm afraid we won't know until it's too…" Rick stopped as a scream echoed from the bowels of the prison.

Someone was there.

* * *

Tyreese pushed Sasha, Allen, Ben and Donna further into the prison. Donna was hanging back, growing weaker since receiving a bite from a roamer in the woods. They had found the prison, the gate torn down, the building blown open. Tyreese insisted they go inside, despite Sasha's protests. Now it looked like their potential haven was a darkened death trap. When Donna screamed, Tyreese turned to see three roamers behind them. Seeing the way ahead was clear, he moved his group in front so he could take out the roamers with his claw hammer.

"Tyreese! Come on!" Sasha was pushing ahead, angry that they were now trapped in this dungeon. It was like a maze. There was no way they were getting out. There were more roamers coming up behind them. Tyreese turned to run.

"C'mon people! Let's move it!" They rounded a corner and found themselves facing down two men and a young boy, all carrying guns trained right at them.

"Where did you come from?" The closest man asked. Tyreese raised his hands but did not loosen his grip on his weapon. Behind the man, Tyreese could see a younger Asian man and a boy of maybe twelve or thirteen.

"Look," Tyreese started, trying to sound calm. "We were just looking for shelter. We don't want any trouble." The man started to respond when the boy raised his gun and aimed behind the group.

"Dad! Walkers!" The man thought for a moment and then motioned Tyreese and his group forward.

"Go! Carl, you stay with them. You know where to go!" Tyreese followed the boy with his group behind him. He could hear the gunshots ringing out, echoing in the tight quarters.

Carl led them down another hallway and into another cellblock. He locked the main door behind him. Sasha leaned against the wall out of breath. Donna collapsed on the ground. Carl noticed the bite on her arm and raised his gun.

"She's been bit." Allen stood between Carl and Donna.

"No! Please." Carl shook his head.

"I can take care of it. It would be quick." Tyreese walked up to the boy, touched by his seriousness. He had to wonder what this kid had seen that had forced him to grow up so fast.

"It's ok. We take care of our own." Tyreese looked down at Donna whose eyes were wide, her breathing shallow. She suddenly began gasping for breath, her eyes bulging, forehead dripping sweat as the fever raged through her. Allen knelt beside her, holding his wife's hand.

"Tyreese she's not dead yet. Please! Not yet!" Tyreese shook his head.

"Allen, you don't want her to turn. You don't want her to be one of them." He hauled Allen to his feet and gently pushed him back to his son. On the ground behind them, Donna gasped her last breath. Tyreese turned and knelt beside her body. He closed her eyes, muttered a prayer and drove his claw hammer through her skull. Allen held on to Ben as both let go of their grief. Tyreese walked over to Sasha.

"We'll be safe here tonight." Sasha glared at him.

"How? How can say that? We're not safe anywhere!" Tyreese opened his mouth to respond when they heard a door slam shut. He turned towards the sound and saw the man and Carl standing on the other side of the bars. Tyreese walked towards them.

"What are you doing?" The man stepped away from the bars and pushed Carl behind him.

"You can stay in the cellblock for the night. You'll be safe here." Sasha ran over, furious.

"You can't just lock us in here!" The man turned to walk away. Tyreese put his arm around his sister and called out to the man.

"What's your name?" The man turned.

"Rick Grimes. You?"

"Tyreese." Rick nodded and turned to walk away. Sasha yelled for him to stop but Tyreese quieted her.

"He's right. We're safe tonight, safer than we've been for a long time. He'll come back tomorrow and we'll discuss what we'll do then."

* * *

After Rick, Glenn and Carl left to investigate the screaming, Daryl was in a foul mood. Rick had refused to let him go.

"I need you to stay here Daryl," he said as he had walked out the door, locking it behind him. Glenn looked at Daryl apologetically as they disappeared down the hall.

"This is bullshit!" Daryl yelled. He got to his feet and started slowly, painfully, towards the door. Hershel stopped him.

"I'm not giving you the keys son. We need you here." Daryl glared at him.

"You can't tell me what to do." Hershel stood his ground.

"That may be true in most cases. But I'm telling you right now, you are not going after Rick. You can barely walk. You have a concussion. You said your vision is still blurry. It would be foolhardy to let you go after them." Daryl clenched his hands into fists but Hershel did not back down. Dani walked up behind Daryl and put her hands on his shoulders and he shrugged her off. He limped into one of the nearby cells and laid down on the bottom bunk. Dani followed him.

"Daryl…" he cut her off.

"Leave me alone Dani, alright?" She ignored him and sat down next to him on the bed.

"Don't you do this Daryl. You get angry and you push people away. You know both Hershel and Rick are right. You'd of killed yourself if you'd gone with him. Is that what you want?" He crossed his arms and turned away from her. "Oh that's great. Just lay there and pout like a two year old." She grabbed his shoulder and forced him to turn around. He started to argue until he saw her face. She was glaring at him, actually angry with him.

"Do you have any idea what a stubborn man you are Daryl Dixon? You want to be left alone? Fine, I'll leave you alone." She stood and turned to leave. She stopped when she felt his hand in hers.

"Don't Dani. I'm sorry. Alright?" He pulled her back down next to him. She put her hand on his face and stroked his cheek.

"I know what you're thinking. Everyone thinks your weak right? That you can't protect the group anymore. You know that's not true. We just want you to get better. Because you're no use to any of us if you're half dead." He stared at her.

"Why do you care about me this much?" She smiled and leaned over him.

"Because you deserve it. And because I know you care about me too." Daryl nodded and she kissed him. For the first time, he didn't hesitate to respond to her. She felt his hand fist into her hair, holding her to him. For a moment they both forgot where they were until they heard someone clear their throat behind them. They broke apart and looked in the doorway of the cell. Glenn stood there, looking embarrassed.

"Hey you guys. Um, sorry to do this right now but there's something you should know."

* * *

After Rick explained about Tyreese and his group in the other cellblock, Oscar and Axel offered to go sit watch.

"We don't know if they're from Woodbury or somewhere else," said Oscar. "We need to find out what they're doin' here." Axel agreed. Rick allowed them to go and posted Carol and Maggie to the guard tower for first watch. He and Glenn would take the second. Daryl was irritated that he was once again being left out but for once kept quiet about it, especially after he caught Dani's raised eyebrow when he had opened his mouth to argue again.

Later that night, after everyone had either taken their posts or gone to sleep, Dani lay next to Daryl on the landing, her head propped up to watch him.

"You asked me why I care so much." He was lying on his back and turned his head slightly to look at her.

"Yeah?" Dani took a deep breath before responding.

"Because of who you are. The way you've told me about how you were brought up and with Merle, you could have been a much different person. You watch out for everyone and even as beat up as you are, you still have that drive to protect the group." She paused and thought about her next words, still afraid that they would make him run from her again. "When I first saw you, I felt something. I didn't know what it was at the time but it kept growing. And I tried to ignore it, even though Maggie told me it was obvious to everyone that I cared about you. I don't think it actually hit me until the other night with Abigail that I think I've fallen in love with you." As soon as the words left Dani's mouth, she wished she could take them back. She had not meant to say that. That was going too far, she knew. Daryl looked away and then turned back.

"Dani I know I can't say that to you because I'd be lyin' if I did. I know that I care but I just don't…" his voice trailed off. "I'm not used to this, alright? You're the first person whose opinion of me I ever gave a damn about so that's sayin' something right there." Dani nodded and lay back on her pillow. She couldn't help but feel sadness of him not feeling the same as she did mixed with relief that he hadn't shut her down. Daryl rolled over on his side and looked down at her.

"Hey, I'm not sayin' that I don't want to be around you, you got that? I do. You just gotta let me figure this all out and we've got a lot of other shit we need to worry about right now, ok?" She nodded and was surprised when he leaned down to kiss her. When he pulled back, Dani smiled at him.

"So kissing is still ok then?" He smirked at her and rolled back.

"It's not so bad." She almost reached over to smack his arm but stopped herself, not wanting to accidentally hurt him. Instead, she moved closer and put her head on his chest. She could hear his heartbeat speed up a bit. He put his arm around her.

"And this is ok too?" He ran his fingers down her arm and the touch gave her chills that tightened her stomach pleasantly in anticipation of something more. Finally he spoke but his voice was barely over a whisper.

"Yeah, we can do this too." Dani smiled in relief and as she fell asleep in Daryl's arms, she knew that even without the actual words, she finally felt safe and loved.


	14. Humanity

**A/N All characters belong to the writers and creators of The Walking Dead. Except those that arose from my own twisted imagination.**

**Chapter Fourteen-Humanity**

It had been two days since Daryl got out of Woodbury. Hershel, after deciding that Daryl's concussion was no more serious than that, had finally relented and allowed Daryl to go up to the guard tower to patrol. Daryl was upset about the loss of his brother, his motorcycle and the fact that his knee was still too sore to even think about going out into the woods to hunt. In fact, it almost hurt too much to climb the stairs to the tower but he wasn't about to say anything. The only one who knew how much pain he was in was Dani.

Dani had remained true to her word. She hadn't pushed him and seemed more relaxed than she had since she arrived at the prison. It was easier to touch her now though it had surprised both of them that morning when he reached up to brush her hair off her face while they were eating breakfast. He'd glanced around to see if anyone else had noticed and saw both Maggie and Glenn trying to hide their grins. Embarrassed, he'd gotten up and headed for the guard tower to relieve Tyreese.

The morning after they had arrived, Tyreese, Rick and Daryl had talked. After seeing that they were another group of survivors who had lost people, just like the group at the prison, Rick invited Tyreese to join them. Sasha had been a bit standoffish at first but seemed to warm to Carol, though she was still keeping to herself. Ben immediately took a shine to Beth. Daryl wasn't too sure about Allen. There was something off about the guy. Rick felt it too and both agreed to keep an eye on him. Tyreese, however, quickly showed his willingness to do what needed to be done to help the group.

"So you're sayin', there's a town nearby that's run by this guy who calls himself the Governor? We've been all over these woods the last few months and we haven't run across anyone from there." Tyreese looked down, lost in thought. "I guess we're lucky we didn't, you know? We might have decided to stay, like your Danielle." He nodded towards Daryl. "I'd never want to get Sasha messed up in any of that." Rick crossed his arms.

"How do you feel about defending the prison, if it comes to that? Would you stand with us?" Tyreese looked hard at both Rick and Daryl before extending his hand in agreement.

"You took us in. You've got good people here and my sister is safe. Whatever I have to do to keep her that way, I'll do it."

When Daryl finally made it up to the top of the guard tower his leg was killing him but he gritted his teeth and opened the door. Tyreese turned as Daryl walked in.

"Hey." Daryl nodded in response.

"Quiet night last night?" Tyreese propped his rifle up on his shoulder.

"So far so good. I thought I saw a flashlight or something around midnight. It could have just been a reflection off the water though." He stretched out his neck. "Never thought I'd be sleepin' in a prison cell. Actually, might not be too bad right now." He looked sideways at Daryl who was watching the road as Glenn, Maggie & Oscar gassed up the truck to make a quick run.

"You and Danielle," he saw Daryl's quick glance back at him. "how come you don't go somewhere more private instead of sleepin' out in the open like you do?" Daryl shrugged.

"Neither one of us much felt like sleepin' in a cage. Dani, she's got a thing about being in small spaces." Tyreese nodded.

"She's claustrophobic?" Daryl looked at him and shrugged.

"Yeah, I guess. It's just worked out." Tyreese chuckled.

"I guess I'm thinkin' I wouldn't be too keen on cuddlin' with my girl at night where everybody can see." Daryl glared at him.

"We ain't doin' nothing. Jesus Christ, everybody in this damn prison is more concerned about my love life than I am!" Tyreese, sensing he'd touched a nerve, backed off.

"Sorry man. Didn't mean to pry. You do what you gotta do." Daryl turned his back on him and Tyreese walked down the stairs.

When Tyreese walked in to the cellblock he was greeted by Carol who handed him a bowl of oatmeal.

"I figured you'd be hungry so I kept some warm for you." Tyreese took the bowl gratefully.

"Thank you. It's a long night up there." He sat down at the table. Danielle passed by, said good morning and walked outside, probably heading for the guard tower. Once the door closed Tyreese looked at Carol.

"What's the deal with her and Daryl?" Carol suppressed a grin.

"Why do you ask?" Tyreese shrugged.

"Curiosity. He doesn't strike me as the warm and affectionate type." Carol smiled.

"Daryl is…well…he's Daryl. I've seen him withdraw completely from this group one minute and the next he's feeding Judith and grinning from ear to ear. With Dani, there's just something there." She tilted her head to look at Tyreese. "Seriously, why did you ask?"

"Heading out for watch duty last night I passed by them on the landing over there, all cozy. I figured him for a hard ass. Just surprised me is all" Carol nodded.

"Well, the whole thing surprised all of us, that's for sure." She patted Tyreese on the arm. "You want any more?" Tyreese shook his head.

"No thank you. This is perfect. I'm gonna head in and catch some shut eye. You let Rick know to get me if he needs anything." Carol smiled.

"Of course."

* * *

Andrea got up early to head down to the infirmary. When she moved the chair out from in front of the door and opened it, she found Tripp and Baylor waiting outside her door.

"What are you boys doing here?" Tripp snorted at the use of "boys".

"Cash told us to keep an eye on you." She brushed past them.

"Well, you tell Cash I don't need protection, alright?" She kept walking down the stairs, trying to ignore the eyes she could feel drilling into her back.

Once she arrived at the infirmary, she discovered that the Governor was already gone. The doctor on duty looked irritated when she gave Andrea the news.

"But he was shot in the head." The doctor shrugged.

"The Governor said he wanted to go home. I wasn't about to argue with him. It was a shallow wound and I got that eye covered. He'll never be able to see out of it again." Andrea thanked her and hurried over to the Governor's house. Outside was a large group of people, all talking at once, worrying about the Governor. One of the women had been crying. Brenda, one of the women Andrea knew had been on Danielle's supply team hurried over to her.

"Andrea did you hear? They're sayin' it was Danielle that did this. That she's been kidnapped and brainwashed into hating the Governor. God knows what else those people have done to her!" Brenda shook her head. "That poor woman. Losing her little girl like that and then to be kidnapped?" Andrea didn't respond and instead smiled, patting Brenda on the shoulder as she walked past. When she got to the door, an insolent looking Cash stood to block her way.

"What do you want?" he asked her, glaring.

"That's none of your business." She started to walk around him and he stepped in front of her. Andrea glared at him.

"What is your problem Cash?" Cash raised his rifle up to his shoulder, a pathetic attempt at trying to look like Merle.

"The Governor was attacked the other night. It's my job to make sure there are no other attempts." Andrea crossed her arms in front of her.

"Drop the badass routine alright? You're not Merle Dixon. You haven't seen nearly as many things as I have. I've probably killed twice the biters you have and men like you don't scare me. So step aside and let me through." Cash's jaw twitched and she could see he was trying hard to come up with something smart to say but instead stepped aside and let her walk in the door.

In the darkened living room, Andrea could just make out the figure sitting in the chair, sipping from a cup of tea. She walked over and sat on the couch to face him. His right eye was bandaged, the gauze wrapped around his head to hold it in place. He looked off at the far wall, not noticing Andrea sitting there. She reached over and took his hand.

"Phillip?" He didn't respond. "Phillip, we should get you back to the infirmary. Make sure you're ok." He still didn't acknowledge her and placed his tea cup on the table next to him.

"I only wanted to build a community where people felt safe. Where they could be as they were before. I've only tried to step into the role that the people have placed me in." He squeezed Andrea's hand.

"Phillip, people are outside. They want to know if you're alright. A lot of them are scared, especially with Merle dead. I don't think Cash is the right one to put in charge…" The Governor turned his head and glared at her, his expression cold.

"Cash is the perfect one for this job. My mistake was leaving security up to Merle Dixon. He allowed the outside to breech our walls twice. He failed to neutralize a situation when he had the chance. He allowed terrorist prisoners to escape not once but twice." Andrea frowned.

"That was his brother. Granted, Daryl's many things but he's no terrorist. Why was Daryl even here? And Michonne? Are you trying to tell me that she was a prisoner too? After she left, peacefully?" Phillip laughed.

"Peacefully? She's the reason Danielle Robertson was kidnapped. She led those terrorists into our town, kidnapped one of our own. And Daryl Dixon was one of those terrorists. From what I've heard, I believe Merle was working on their side, trying to learn our weaknesses. They've got a small army at that prison, planning on doing everything in their power to destroy our way of life. We have to stop them." Andrea stood in front of him.

"I spent a lot of time with Rick and Daryl in Atlanta and on the farm. If we hadn't been separated that night when the farm was overrun, I would probably still be with them. They were with good, honest, everyday people, not military." The Governor glared at her.

"You will need to decide where your loyalties lie. Do you plan on protecting this town? If not, then you can go right ahead and join your 'friends'." Andrea froze. She did not want to leave Woodbury. She only wanted answers. However, the fear of what lie beyond the protective walls of the town greatly outweighed her desire to satisfy her curiosity.

"Phillip, I am with Woodbury. I will help defend this town if need be. Maybe something happened over the winter, I don't know. This might not be the same group I was with back in Atlanta and on the farm." She stopped when a she heard a knock on the door. Andrea stood to answer and found a nervous Milton on the porch.

"Is the Governor available?" Andrea stood aside to let him in. The Governor had risen when he heard Milton's voice.

"Andrea, would you excuse us please?" Stunned Andrea nodded and left the house.

* * *

After Milton left, the Governor went to Penny's room. Opening the cage, he called to his daughter. She ran at him, her face hooded. He slowly pulled the hood off of her head and had to move quickly to keep away from her snapping jaws. He tried to hold her, to connect with his little girl, but there was nothing there. He sobbed. He wanted his little girl back.

Milton had told him that the experiments he had done on Abigail Robertson had been inconclusive. He had not found any sign of her immune system attacking the biter virus after she had reanimated.

"It appears my theory was incorrect. I thought perhaps if someone were to turn while battling a viral infection, their immune system might continue to fight the biter virus during reanimation. If that had been true, we may have been able to work on a possible vaccine, but none of the tissue and blood samples I took after Abigail Robertson's reanimation support that theory." The Governor had put his face in his hands.

"Are you sure?" He asked, his voice pained. Abigail had been the one hope he had to possibly heal Penny. "It's only been a couple of weeks. You said yourself that this would take time." Milton shuffled nervously by the door.

"Governor, I'm telling you there were no signs of any leukocyte activity against the biter virus in Abigail's blood work. Her immune system died when she did and did not restart when her brain stem became active." The Governor stood and began pacing.

"So what you're saying is, there's no way we can prevent or reverse this?" Milton shook his head.

"With the equipment, knowledge and resources I currently have, not at this time." The Governor stood, turned his back on Milton, and walked out of the room.

"Thank you. You can see yourself out." He shut the door.

Now, sitting in his chair with his snarling, snapping little girl, he cried. No hope. There was no hope. He could only try to reach Penny, tap into the happy girl she had been before she died. Maybe touching her humanity was the key. Milton had tried it with adults but children were different. They kept that innocence until the real world seeped into mind and made them cynical, jaded.

"Penny? Penny baby it's Daddy." Penny continued to struggle. "Baby please look at me. Show me that you can hear me." She snarled and lunged but the straight jacket and chain kept her held back. "Penny?" He drew in a deep breath and screamed at her.

"Penny look at me!" She quieted for a second and then resumed her struggling. Now weeping openly, the Governor put the hood back over her head and pushed her back into her cage.

* * *

Dani set the binoculars down. Maggie, Glenn and Oscar would be back soon and there were a number of walkers heading towards the gate. She stepped out on to the catwalk and hollered down at Axel.

"We got a herd comin' in! Need to get them cleared before the crew gets back!" Axel looked towards the gate then back up to Dani.

"I'm on it!" He motioned to Allen and Ben to follow him and they began to clear out the walkers. Daryl shook his head.

"There's somethin' off about that guy." Dani frowned.

"Who?" Daryl nodded towards the men at the fence.

"That new guy, Allen. I don't trust him. Rick's picked it up too." Dani knew from talking to Maggie and Carol that Daryl could read people pretty well.

"But don't you think Tyreese would have picked up on somethin'? He doesn't strike me as the stupid type." Daryl shrugged.

"Rick ain't stupid and he don't always see everything that's right in front of him. Sometimes, people don't see what they don't want to." They both watched as Allen took his crowbar and drove it through the fence to kill another walker. Daryl looked over at Dani.

"You be careful around him, you hear me?" Dani saw his face was serious. She put her hand on his arm.

"Don't worry about me, Daryl. I can handle myself." She stood as she saw the truck pull up the driveway. They drove through the gate and Axel quickly shut it behind them.

"They're back." She turned to head down from the tower when Daryl stood and grabbed her arm, turning her around to face him.

"I'm serious Dani. You be careful." Dani bit her lip as she studied his face. He was actually worried something might happen. Before she could stretch up to kiss him, his arms were around her and he was kissing her so hard that it took her breath away. When they broke apart, they were both out of breath. She wanted so much more and she was willing to move at his pace but when he did things like that, it took every bit of restraint she had not to push it. She laughed.

"Wow, I'm going to have to get you alone more often." He smirked at her and he opened the door.

"Whatever."

* * *

Michonne made it back to Woodbury quickly. She almost got cut off by a pack of walkers but was able to quickly kill one by itself and cover herself with it's blood. The group walked past her like she didn't exist. Once she got to the wall, she saw it was heavily guarded. She had figured once Merle was dead the little bastards in charge now would make sure the town was protected. Still, she knew she could find a weak link. There was always a weak link.

She knew that once she made it in to Woodbury, she was going straight for the Governor. Michonne had known from the first day she saw him kill those soldiers in the helicopter that no matter what he said or did, he was no savior. She was convinced that the only way to break up this cult was to remove the head.

Part of her thought it was stupid to try but Michonne knew it was right. The Governor was a threat to anyone outside of Woodbury. The prison group, they were the biggest target at the moment but Michonne knew from personal experience that anyone who didn't fall under his spell was immediately declared a threat.

Michonne was able to slip over the wall and made her way to the Governor's house. After listening carefully for any noise, she climbed in through an open window. She scanned the room and immediately saw her katana. Just as she thought. He had it on display like a trophy.

Michonne pulled a chair to the center of the room, lay her katana across her lap and waited.


	15. First Blood

**A/N All characters belong to the writers and creators of The Walking Dead. Except those that arose from my own twisted imagination.**

**Chapter Fifteen-First Blood**

Michonne sat patiently, waiting for the Governor to return. She stared at the front door, willing him to walk in so she could finish this and move on. She wasn't sure if she would return to the prison or not at this point. Michonne hoped that with the Governor dead, Andrea would come to her senses and leave Woodbury. Suddenly, a noise from the other room caught her attention. She rose quickly, her katana drawn, and walked towards the door. She carefully walked into the room and immediately saw a greenish glow coming from one wall. Michonne turned and stared in shock. The wall was comprised of aquariums filled with heads. Most were walker but a number were obviously human. She approached the aquariums, staring in fascination and horror, when she heard a bump against a wall. Turning, she saw a cage door. She could hear someone or something moving around behind it. Michonne opened the door and saw a little girl, bound in a straight jacket, head covered in a bag and obviously chained.

The aquariums had shocked Michonne but this disgusted her. What the hell was going on that this man would keep a little girl as his prisoner? Michonne softly called to the girl and she stumbled forward. Michonne knelt down in front of her and reached up to unhook the chain tethering her to the room. The girl struggled and Michonne pulled the sack off of her head. She jumped back as the girl snarled and snapped at her. She was a walker. Michonne hadn't seen a child walker before. She'd assumed that if a child got attacked by walkers, they would just consume the body. The girl walked towards her and Michonne drew her katana.

"No!" Michonne turned and saw the Governor standing in the doorway. His hand was extended and his face was terrified, pleading. She saw his eye was bandaged, probably from where Danielle had shot him the other night. "Please, don't kill my little girl." Michonne stared at him, dumbfounded. He was keeping his dead daughter chained up in a cage? She kept her hand on the girl's shoulder, keeping the girl between herself and the Governor. He pulled his gun out of his holster and set it on the floor. He walked towards them, his hands still in the air.

"Please. Do what you want to me but don't kill my Penny." Penny. The name that was in that crazy notebook she had found not long after arriving in Woodbury.

"She's your daughter." It wasn't a question. The Governor nodded, his eyes hopeful.

"Yes. We're working on a cure. She's getting better. Just please, don't hurt her." Michonne looked down at the poor girl struggling in her grasp and back up to the Governor. Her face hardened. She raised her katana and drove it through the back of Penny's head.

"NO!" The pain and anguish in the Governor's voice brought Michonne no form of satisfaction. She had just put a poor, tortured little girl out of her misery. She let Penny's body drop to the floor. The Governor stared at his daughter's lifeless body, his hands shaking, and then screamed like a caged animal. He lunged at Michonne. They both crashed against the wall of aquariums which shattered, spilling water and heads onto the floor. His hands closed around her neck and she dropped her katana. They fell to the floor and Michonne barely avoided being bitten by the head of a walker. Those things were still trying to bite, trying to feed. Coming dangerously close to losing consciousness, Michonne saw a piece of glass by her hand. She reached for it, struggling under the Governor's death grip. Her hands closed around the glass shard and she drove it into his injured eye.

The Governor screamed and let go of her. Michonne gasped for air and quickly got to her feet. She picked up her sword and raised it when she heard a gun cock behind her. Michonne spun around and came face to face with Andrea.

Andrea's face went from anger to shock. She looked from Michonne, to the Governor on the floor, crying and cradling the body of a dead walker. Then she saw the aquariums…and the heads…she lowered her gun.

"Michonne what did you do?" Her voice was barely over a whisper. Michonne stared at her but did not answer. Andrea stared once more at the Governor and the heads then looked back at Michonne, her face twisted in confusion.

"My god! What have you done?" Michonne waited until Andrea knelt by the Governor and then quickly left the house through the open window.

* * *

Allen sat outside Tyreese's cell, debating on whether or not to wake the man up. He needed to talk to him and caught his break when Maggie and Glenn got back from their run. While everyone was gathered outside, Allen had snuck back in to the cellblock to look for Tyreese.

Allen wanted to get out of the prison. He didn't want to stay there, not with these people. They let convicts live with them, for crying out loud. He knew that the redneck was dangerous and he had his doubts about the guy who claimed to have been a sheriff. Making them all sleep in the prison cells, eating a rationed diet of canned food. His son was getting close to the younger girl and that bothered him. Even Sasha was getting close to Oscar and Carol. They were forming relationships, like they planned on making a life here. That wasn't for him. As soon as he had heard about that town, Woodbury, he wanted to go there. Stability, not having to scrounge for scraps, being part of a community again…he wanted that for himself and his son.

Allen stood and looked into the cell and was surprised to see Tyreese looking back at him.

"I was wondering when you were just gonna drag your sorry ass in here." Allen looked downstairs, saw that no one else had come back in yet and then walked into the cell.

"Tyreese, how long are you planning on staying with these people?" Tyreese sat up and frowned.

"I wasn't aware that we were in an all fired hurry to leave." Allen looked away nervously. He was always intimidated by Tyreese.

"Look, this has been a great place to regroup and recover, especially after losing Donna but Tyreese, these aren't our people." Tyreese got to his feet.

"What people? We don't have "people" anymore Allen! These are good people and they've done right by us. They brought us in when they could have just sent us on our way…" Allen interrupted him.

"We had to swear allegiance to that sheriff and that redneck Tyreese! We had to promise that we'd defend these people, people that we know nothing about. What the hell was that about? Why should we stick our necks out and get in the middle of this dispute with that Woodbury?" He swallowed hard before continuing. "Honestly, Tyreese, that's where I want to go." Tyreese got in his face.

"Were you even listening to Rick and Daryl when they told us what those people did? You want your boy hanging out with rapists and child killers? People who torture people just because they feel threatened and want what these people earned? And why are you so down on Rick and Daryl? These guys kept a group of people alive for months, just like we did. Why are they any different than us? Just because they weren't as rich as you and I were? You sold real estate. I played for the Falcons. So what? What does any of that matter now?" Allen looked away. He knew he wasn't going to convince Tyreese. He was going to have to find another way to get out, to get his son out. He decided to back off, let Tyreese think he was staying.

"Maybe you're right Tyreese. Look, I just miss Donna, alright man?" Tyreese patted him on the shoulder.

"Don't worry about it. Just don't let any of them hear you talk like that, you hear me?" Allen nodded and walked downstairs.

* * *

Dani went outside after dinner. The sun going down over the trees was so pretty, a reddish orange ball of fire. It almost looked like it did back in California, when it went down over the ocean. Sitting by herself, she could think, about Abigail, her life before all of this, her family and also about Daryl. She loved being at the prison, around these people but she still wished that she could have made it west. Danielle knew her cousins, backwoods swamp rednecks that they were, would have made it through all of this. They were probably holed up with their families in a bunker somewhere. She hadn't lied when she'd told Maggie her biggest attraction to Daryl was that he was familiar. He was exactly the kind of guy that she'd lived around until she left home. The kind of guy her ex-husband definitely had not been.

Greg hadn't even been able to change the oil in his car, let alone know how to handle a gun. When they'd moved to Atlanta after he got the chief of emergency medicine position at the hospital, he'd been ecstatic about the pay but lamented living in "The South". He was the reason she'd lost her accent. He'd treated her like Eliza Doolittle, correcting her pronunciation and flipping out if she so much slipped in a "y'all" from the time that they started dating. She should have moved back home, gone to LSU, been there to take care of Granddad and MeeMaw and married one of the good ol' boys from the neighborhood. But no, she'd had to run as far away from her mother as possible. She was lost in her thoughts and didn't hear Daryl until he was sitting next to her.

"Hey." That one word was all it took to make her stomach clench in a very good way.

"Hey. What are you doin' out here?" Dani didn't take her eyes off the darkening sky but could feel he was watching her.

"Was lookin' for you. Are you on watch tonight with Maggie?" Dani shook her head.

"Glenn's on duty with Maggie tonight." Daryl chuckled. Dani glanced over at him.

"Well, I don't blame them for wanting some alone time." The smirk left his face.

"Dani, what do you want? I'm tryin'. I kiss you. I hold you when you sleep. I've let you get closer to me than anyone. Just what else do you want from me?" Suddenly, a conversation with Maggie flashed in her head:

_"...that's only because he probably wouldn't figure it out unless you jumped in his lap naked."_

It was dusk now, and the light was fading fast. No one was around. No one was watching. Without even thinking, she was straddling his lap. His body tensed and she briefly realized that she was probably pushing it but she didn't care anymore.

Without saying a word, Dani kissed him hard. Daryl didn't respond at first, his body was too tense. Then his hand was holding the back of her neck, his other hand on her hip and he was kissing her harder than he had before. She quickly unbuttoned his shirt, wanting to hurry before he changed his mind. His hands shook when he untucked her shirt from her jeans and she helped him pull it off over her head. She pushed him on his back and leaned over to kiss him.

"I'm gonna show you what I want." Her hand was on his cheek and she felt him nod.

"Alright." Daryl kissed her again as she reached between them to unbutton his pants.

* * *

Once Michonne left, Andrea tried to figure out what had happened. The aquariums, the heads, the dead little walker that Andrea realized, to her horror, was Phillip's daughter Penny. She recognized her from her picture. Phillip was crying, holding his daughter. Blood was running down his face from the glass shard protruding from his eye.

"Phillip, we need to get you to the infirmary." He ignored her and continued to rock his little girl's body back and forth. Andrea heard the front door open and looked up as Cash ran in.

"What the hell happened?" Andrea glared at him.

"Go get the doctor!" When Cash hesitated, she glared at him. "Go get the doctor now!" Cash turned and left the room. Andrea tried to look at the Governor's eye but he kept his face focused on his daughter, stroking her hair.

"Penny honey." Andrea could barely make out his words. "Penny. Daddy still loves you baby." Andrea put her hand on his shoulder.

"Phillip, you need to see the doctor. If you want I'll stay with Penny, ok?" Just then the Doctor came in, followed by Cash and Tripp with a stretcher. Prying his hands from his daughter's body, Andrea took Penny from him.

"Phillip, I'll stay with her. We'll be right here." The Governor allowed the doctor to help him onto the stretcher. Just as they were wheeling him out, he stopped them and looked at Andrea.

"Please don't leave her alone. She hates being alone." Andrea nodded and the boys wheeled the Governor out of the house. When he was gone, she looked around the room. She took in the cage door, the chains, the heads…Andrea jumped as one walker head got too close to her leg. She jumped up and quickly crushed it's skull beneath her foot.

That annoying voice in Andrea's head was getting louder. Who was this man? What was he doing in this town? Michonne had always said that the town was not what it seemed and Andrea had dismissed her but what if Michonne was right? What if there was more going on here than just survival? She knew one thing: she had to go back to the prison and talk to the group. Find out what was going on from their side. Pushing those thoughts out of her mind for a moment, Andrea picked Penny up, laid her on the couch and covered her little body with a blanket. Andrea then sat in the chair, her mind racing again, and began to cry.

* * *

Daryl and Dani snuck back into the cellblock like two teenagers coming home after curfew. They didn't touch, didn't even look at each other, until they were safely back up on their perch. Daryl saw that Carol was still up but he couldn't look at her. The image of Dani's silhouette in the moonlight, the softness of her skin was still fresh in his mind and it embarrassed him to think that Carol, or anyone for that matter, would find out what he and Dani had just done.

On the landing, Dani came to him in the dark, her body curling against his. He felt her breath on his ear just before she whispered to him.

"Thank you."


	16. Words Like Fists

**A/N All characters belong to the writers and creators of The Walking Dead. Except those that arose from my own twisted imagination.**

**Chapter Sixteen-Words Like Fists**

Rick took Tyreese out to patrol the perimeter and also to talk about Allen. Daryl wouldn't let go of his mistrust of the guy and it was starting to really get to Rick. Daryl bluntly told Rick that Tyreese was as blind about Allen as Rick had been about Shane. That had touched a nerve but Rick couldn't deny that Daryl might be right.

"Look," Rick said as he watched two more walkers come out from the trees. "Daryl may be a hothead and sometimes he can even be a complete asshole but he can read people better than anyone I've known. And if he says he's picking up something off of Allen, then I believe him." Tyreese nodded.

"I understand you want to protect your people Rick. I want to protect mine too. Sasha is all I have left now. Allen and Ben, well, we've been together for a long time now. We're all that's left from our original group. You understand that don't you?" Rick agreed.

"I do. I also understand that sometimes you don't look at people the same when you've been around them for a long time. You tend to overlook things that would normally strike you as wrong if you saw it with a stranger." Tyreese frowned as he thought again about what Allen had said the day before. He was afraid to mention that to Rick though. Tyreese knew it would cause problems with the group. Besides, he figured Allen was just upset about Donna.

"I'll talk to him Rick, if that will make you feel better. Make the group feel better. Alright?" Rick nodded.

"I appreciate it Tyreese."

* * *

Daryl sat watch in the guard tower but was having a hard time focusing. His mind kept drifting back to the night before. He kept seeing Dani's body outlined in the moonlight…feeling her move with him…hearing her whisper his name…about how when they went back inside and Dani was curled up next to him in the dark with her body pressed against his, he'd almost forgotten that every noise made in that building echoed. Not only that, but for one second part of him really hadn't cared. He was shook back to the present when the door opened and Carol walked in. She smiled at him.

"How's everything going up here?" Daryl shrugged, refusing to meet her eyes.

"So far, it's quiet but I doubt anyone would roll up here in the middle of the afternoon in this heat." Carol didn't respond and Daryl glanced over at her.

"Did you come up here for a reason or what?" Carol glanced out the window briefly before looking back at him.

"I was just concerned. You didn't seem yourself this morning. Just wanted to make sure you were doing ok." Daryl stood and walked to one of the side windows to get a better look at the woods but also to keep his back to Carol.

"I'm fine, alright?" He looked back over his shoulder. Carol really did look concerned.

"Your knee's not still hurtin' is it?" He shook his head.

"No, not too bad." He was hoping she would give up and leave. He liked Carol but right now, he just wanted to be left alone. Even Dani had understood that and was working in the garden with Beth and Carl. Carol opened the door to the tower and stepped outside.

"Daryl, if you do need to talk you know I'm here right?" He glanced back and nodded.

"Yeah. Thanks." Carol left the room. Daryl sat back down and stretched his leg out. His knee was still bothering him quite a bit. The swelling was going down and the bruising was starting to heal but Hershel warned him it would probably take a while for the pain to go away. Daryl could deal with the pain, so long as he could pull his weight around the prison. He looked back out over the grounds and saw Dani by the garden. She was sitting on the ground with Judith in her lap, shading the baby's head from the sun and pointing to the plants. His mind flashed to the night before: Dani on top of him…getting lost in watching her, feeling her…he shook his head. This was exactly why he didn't want to take things further with her. She was a distraction and there was too much going on for them to be distracted. He looked over towards the woods and saw a familiar figure in the field, sprinting towards the fence. She drew her sword and decapitated one walker. Michonne. She was back.

Daryl went out on the catwalk and hollered for Rick and Tyreese.

* * *

Michonne knew she probably wouldn't be greeted with open arms at the prison but she didn't want to leave them vulnerable. The Governor would retaliate for what she had done, she knew that. Running across the field, she decapitated one walker, impaled another. She knew she had been spotted when she heard gunfire and saw walkers dropping. She made it to the front gate where Rick let her in. She looked up found herself staring down the barrel of a gun.

"Where the hell have you been?" Rick's voice was cold. Michonne had not expected a warm greeting but she was still a little surprised. She glared at him coldly.

"Forgot my sword." Rick put the gun down. Next to him was a big guy who looked vaguely familiar. She was sure she recognized him from somewhere, from before the world went to hell. Michonne glanced around and saw that the three of them were alone.

"Aren't you gonna invite me in?" She said, sarcastically. Rick frowned, glanced around and then shook his head.

"I'm not sure that's such a good idea Michonne. You've been gone almost three days. What's been goin' on?" Michonne looked from Rick to the new guy. She realized why he looked familiar. Tyreese something…used to play for the Falcons.

"The Governor? He's crazier than we thought." Rick frowned at her and looked at Tyreese.

"Ok Michonne. You have our attention." She proceeded to tell him about Andrea, Penny and the heads in the aquariums.

* * *

When Dani heard the yelling and saw Michonne, she quickly stood and took Judith back to the cellblock, hauling Carl and Beth in with her. Carl protested but Dani ordered him inside. He stared defiantly at her.

"You're not my mother." Dani pursed her lips.

"I may not be your mother but that don't mean I can't tell you what to do. Now do as you're told and get inside right now!" Beth put her hand on Carl's shoulder and gave him a push.

"C'mon Carl. She's right. We should go inside with my Dad and Carol." When they walked past the guard tower, Dani looked up to see Daryl standing with Oscar outside on the catwalk, both watching Rick and Tyreese with Michonne. Daryl had his rifle trained on Michonne, waiting for one wrong move.

Inside the cellblock, everyone was talking at once. Maggie turned when the Dani closed the door and locked it behind them.

"Dani, what's going on?" Dani handed Judith to Carol and walked over to Maggie and Glenn.

"Michonne's back." Sasha, sitting with Ben and Allen, was watching them.

"Who's Michonne?" Glenn looked over at her.

"A woman who escaped from Woodbury. She helped get Maggie and I out of there when we were taken. She saved Daryl too a few days ago and came back with us that night but she disappeared the next morning." Sasha frowned.

"So this is a bad thing that she's back?" Glenn shrugged.

"I'm not sure." Sasha got up and walked over to them.

"Is she dangerous?" Her voice was low but the anxiety was evident. She was worried about Tyreese. Glenn shook his head and glanced at Maggie.

"I don't think so, not to our people anyway." Though she tried not to show it, fear was all over Sasha's face.

"But we're not 'your people' yet, are we?" Glenn blushed and looked at Maggie for help. Maggie put her hand on Sasha's shoulder.

"Michonne isn't dangerous. She's just, I don't know, different. She wouldn't hurt anyone who didn't pose a threat to her." Sasha didn't look like she believed Maggie. The outside door to the cellblock opened and Daryl and Oscar walked in. Daryl used his keys to open the inner door and left it open. Hershel looked up expectantly.

"Well? What's going on?" Daryl shrugged.

"I don't know. Rick waved us off. They're still out there talkin'. She's got her sword back though, so you know she went back to Woodbury. Who knows what shit she done stirred up now." He glanced over at Dani, saw the look she was giving him and looked away. It was the same look she had given him since he had kissed her the other morning at Abigail's funeral. The begging look, the one that questioned what was happening between them, the one that said she wanted more than he was able to give her. It pissed him off. He had laid out reality to her, told her what he could and could not give her and she still wouldn't back off. Sure he'd fucked her the night before but that sure as shit didn't change anything. They had things to do, bigger things to worry about. He'd already decided he was going to stay away from her as much as possible.

"Daryl?" Glenn's voice brought him back.

"What?" Glenn shouldn't have been surprised by the angry tone in Daryl's voice but it he was startled by it anyway.

"I asked about Rick and Tyreese. Did they seem worried or anything?" Daryl nodded.

"Yeah. Something big's going down. We need to get prepared. Don't need to get caught with our asses hangin' out like we were the other night." Daryl began issuing orders to everyone, having them check the ammo, the weapons, stash the food and water. Everyone quickly moved to do what he'd said, all of them made even more anxious by the tone in his voice. He'd turned to head back out, to keep an eye on Rick, when he heard her say his name. Daryl turned slowly around and glared at her.

"Don't you have somethin' you need to do?" Dani flinched at his tone but tried not to let the hurt show on her face.

"Daryl, I think we need to talk…" he cut her off.

"Talk about what Dani? Didn't you get what you wanted last night?" He was trying hard to keep from yelling. She wasn't about to cry, wasn't about to show weakness in front of him.

"Daryl I'm sorry. I took things too far last night. It won't happen again." She turned away and started walking towards the kitchen to help Beth and Carol gather the food. When she got to the doorway, his voice stopped her.

"You think that's it? That I'm pissed at you for that? I'm pissed at myself that I let it happen." She turned back around and he was staring at the ground, looking almost defeated. Dani never thought she'd see the day when Daryl Dixon would let his emotions show that publically. She walked back over to him but he quickly backed away.

"Dani, we don't have time for this. You want something and I can't give it to you. If you want some kind of 'relationship'", he almost spat out the word. "why don't you go hit on Rick alright? I don't have the time to give you one. The Governor, he's comin' for us. You know that he is. And you think now's a good time to start worryin' about feelings and shit? Are you that goddamn stupid?" His voice was rising and Dani was starting to back away, wanting to turn and run. He looked more like himself now, the defeated Daryl was gone and replaced by the Daryl she had met her first day at the prison.

"I'm sorry Daryl. I made a mistake. I thought…"

"You thought? You thought? When the hell have you ever thought? You ran away from your mother, you married the first loser you met, didn't make it out of the city in time to get away, you moved into Woodbury and screwed the Governor instead of just gettin' your daughter out of there when she was sick. You ran here with no food, no water and no plan hopin' that we'd fix things for you." He stopped to take a breath and realized for a second that he could have beat her and his fists couldn't have done as much damage as his words were doing at that moment. Still, he continued. "I won't even start to name every stupid thing you've done since you've been here. And you're still not thinkin'. I don't get you Danielle. Do you just like gettin' knocked around all the time? Is that what gets you off?" Danielle couldn't take it anymore. She opened her mouth to say something when she saw Rick, Tyreese and Michonne in the doorway. Daryl turned and couldn't look Rick in the eye when he saw the confusion on Rick's face.

"Everything alright in here?" Danielle shook her head and ran outside. She wasn't about to let Daryl see her cry again. She ran to the edge of the yard where a bus had been overturned and hid behind it, crying hysterically. Daryl was right. She was stupid. She'd always been stupid. This was just icing on the cake. She looked up at the growls of the walkers at the fence. There were two of them, both reaching through the fence towards her, their teeth snapping. She was well out of reach and didn't have anything to kill them with anyway.

"Would y'all just shut the hell up?" The walkers, of course, didn't listen. Dani closed her eyes and pressed her hands against her ears, trying to block out everything around her.


	17. Get Over It

**A/N All characters belong to the writers and creators of The Walking Dead. Except those that arose from my own twisted imagination.**

**Chapter Seventeen-Get Over It**

"Dammit Daryl. It's bad enough I have to worry about you runnin' off and doin' something stupid, now I have to worry about you being an ass here too?" Daryl glared at Rick.

"This ain't your concern." Rick walked across the room and stood right in front of Daryl, staring him down.

"It is my concern when it affects the group. Danielle is not stable. You know that. You've been worrying about that for days. So why the hell would you say all that to her, huh? Everyone knows what's goin' on with you two, don't think we don't. She risked her life for you Daryl. You owe her something." Daryl shook his head.

"I don't owe her shit." He started to walk past Rick but Rick stopped him.

"Daryl, you know I don't care what you do because generally, what you do benefits the group. I know you think that if you let anyone see that you have any kind of feelings at all for Danielle that it will somehow make you look weak. That's not true. What you're doin' right now, being a stubborn asshole, that makes you look weak. Now you need to fix this. I don't care what you need to say or what you need to do but you need to fix this now. Because all you're doing is keeping the group on edge and it's going to be bad, do you understand? We have to pull together because the storm that's about to hit is going to be huge. And if we're not whole, if we're not strong, we're all dead." Rick stepped aside. "Now you go find her and you make things right." Daryl smirked at him.

"Is that supposed to be some kinda order?" Rick's eyes narrowed.

"It's whatever it needs to be to get you to do what needs to be done." Daryl looked behind him and saw Carol standing just behind the stairs. Her face mirrored Rick's and Daryl knew that she had heard what he'd yelled at Dani as well. Seeing her disappointment in him was harder to take than Rick's. Daryl turned back around and glared at Rick.

"If you're so concerned about saving Danielle, then why don't you go deal with her?" Rick frowned.

"Because I'm not the one in love with her." Daryl flinched. He felt like he'd been punched in the gut. He tried to respond, to deny it, but instead walked towards the door. Rick called after him.

"Fix it Daryl." Daryl flipped him off and walked outside.

* * *

Danielle had finally calmed down and was staring at the fence. Three more walkers had joined the original two and the noise was oddly soothing. It blocked out her thoughts and helped her focus. To hell with Daryl Dixon. To hell with everyone at this prison. She didn't want to leave but maybe it would be easier to just let one of these things bite her and she could die the same way her daughter did. What was the point of going on anymore? She didn't have anyone. Daryl didn't want her, he'd made that clear. She stood and watched as another walker joined the others at the fence. It was getting louder. She debated how she should do it. Should she let one of them bite her arm and die slow? Or should she press herself up to the fence and let them tear her to pieces? She took a step forward when an arrow whizzed past her ear, killing one of the walkers. Dani turned and saw Daryl standing behind her. The anger came back.

"What the hell do you think you're doin?"

"I should ask you the same question." He walked over to her, grabbed her arm and started hauling her away from the fence. She struggled but he wouldn't let go.

"Stop it Daryl! You're hurting me!" He let go of her arm and she backed away from him.

"Don't you dare touch me again, do you hear me?" Danielle hissed the words at him. He frowned at her.

"I'll do whatever I have to do to keep you from killing yourself. Were you just gonna let them walkers bite you?"

"What's it matter to you if I live or die? You've already made it clear that you don't give a shit about me so why should I? I don't have anything now. Might as well check out." She glared at him, hate evident in her face. She waited a moment and then walked past him towards the prison.

"Dani, I'm sorry." The words stopped her cold. Danielle turned slowly and laughed.

"Wow. This makes the second time in the past few days that you've apologized to me. Big bad Daryl Dixon isn't going soft is he?" He ignored the mocking tone in her voice, something he had to try very hard to do. He knew Rick was right and that he needed to fix things with Dani. He had taken his own self-loathing out on her and it wasn't right. Merle had always said that no one was going to ever take care of him the way that Merle did and Dani had proven that wrong. He was being stupid trying to push her away. She wasn't the distraction. His inability to recognize what it felt like to love someone was the distraction.

"I didn't mean to say those things to you, alright? I was pissed at myself and you were an easy target." She stared at him, trying to understand.

"You made me feel like shit Daryl." He nodded.

"I know. I'm sorry. Just get over it..." Dani's laugh cut him off.

"I'm sorry, did I just hear you say 'get over it'? You pretty much called me a stupid whore and you want to just 'get over' that? Are you kidding me right now? That's your idea of an apology?" She started to turn away but instead walked over to him and punched him in the face.

"Get over that asshole."

* * *

Andrea stowed her gun and ammunition in the car. She had told the Governor that she was going to the prison, on behalf of Woodbury, and try to talk to Rick. The Governor, obviously unhappy, gave her forty-eight hours to get to the prison, talk to them and then return. If she didn't, he said, he'd assume she had been killed and would proceed with a full military assault on the prison. She had quickly packed food and water. It was early afternoon and she wanted to get there before dark.

When Cash brought the car around, he had definitely not been happy. He almost threw the keys at her and left her with a young Columbian man named Miguel.

"Miguel's gonna check to make sure you ain't stealin' nothin'." Cash spit out. Andrea narrowed her eyes.

"If you're so worried about it, why don't you check?" Cash looked annoyed at the question, which pleased Andrea.

"I've got security issues to check on. Need to find out how that chick got in here to try to kill the Governor." Andrea silently thanked Michonne for making it so she could do this away from the watchful eyes of Cash.

Andrea took the keys from Miguel. The poor kid looked nervous.

"I think we're good here," she said, almost cheerful. "Just tell the Governor that I'll be back as soon as I can. I'm hoping we can negotiate without any more people dying." Miguel didn't move from in front of the door. "Was there something else Miguel?" He didn't say anything but motioned for her to follow him to the trunk.

"I think you don't want to drive up the road at the prison. You know, in case they are not your friends, yes?" Andrea frowned.

"I didn't think that but I guess you may have a point. What do you suggest?" He took the keys from her hand and opened the trunk. Miguel reached under the supply bag and removed a long pole with pincers at the end. It looked like something a park worker would use to pick up trash.

"You find a biter. An easy one, by itself. Clamp this around it's neck and use it to hide yourself. A…camouflage?" Andrea nodded. "You park the car on the road first, then find biter. Walk through the woods, see if the prison is safe. Then talk to your friends." Andrea smiled. The poor kid was sweet. He wouldn't last long in Cash's inner circle if he didn't toughen up, which might not be such a bad thing.

"Thank you Miguel. I'll use it. And I'll be back soon." He nodded and walked quickly away from the car. Andrea climbed in and started the engine. Slowly, she drove towards the gate. She waited a few minutes as the man on duty, an older man who reminded Andrea of Dale, opened the gate for her and she left the safety of Woodbury's walls for the first time in over a month.

The Governor watched her leave from the window. Cash stood behind him.

"Did she say anything to you before she left?" Cash responded quickly.

"She told Miguel she'd be back soon. Wants to try to negotiate to keep more people from dyin'." The Governor frowned.

"You know Cash, I don't know where her loyalties lie. I just don't think she is truly with us." Cash nodded.

"Want me to send a group to follow her?" The Governor shook his head.

"Not just yet. I don't want our forces split. They may decide to bring in more than a rescue squad next time. We have people who are depending on us to keep them safe. Our focus should be on them. We will need to be ready for when the next attack happens."

"Governor, I think we need to just follow the original plan we had when Merle found those two scavenging. Go clear out that prison and turn it back over to the biters." The Governor turned and focused on Cash.

"You heard what I said. You are to wait until Andrea returns." Cash nodded.

"And if she don't?" The Governor turned back to the window.

"We'll kill them all."

* * *

Daryl was stunned and it took him a second to realize that she had actually hit him. She was glaring at him, tears shining in her eyes.

"Now go ahead. Tell me how stupid I am again. Call me a whore, call me a bad mother. Hell, go ahead and pop me one. Do whatever you want. Just get it all out of your system right now so I can really hate you and we can be done with this thing. But don't you dare apologize to me unless you mean it. And I don't think that you do. Because if you actually mean it, you're gonna have to do better than just words sweetheart because, let's face it Dixon, words ain't your strong point." Daryl's jaw was set. His cheek, which was still bruised from the beating he took in Woodbury, was starting to swell again. She thought for just a moment that he might actually hit her. Instead, he walked over to her and carefully wiped the tears from her face. His eyes locked with hers and he leaned over to kiss her. It was quick and hesitant, like he was afraid she'd hit him again. He pulled her into his arms and held her. She tensed up, resisting being so close to him. She hated to admit that this was what she wanted. She still wanted Daryl and she still wanted him to want her, as messed up as that sounded after the way he had talked to her. She rested her head on his shoulder.

"You can't do this to me again Daryl. Either you care about me or you don't. Make up your mind which way it is because I can't take this anymore." His voice was so quiet, she almost didn't know if he was talking to her or to himself.

"I want to fix this." Dani pulled away from him to look him in the eye.

"Like I said, you've got to figure out what you want. You're not the abused little boy anymore. You don't have to hide your feelings from anyone. No one's going to beat you or tell you that you're not a man or say you're nothing. I'm not asking you to be the way Glenn is with Maggie but you have to give me something. I swear, the only time you show that you care about me is when you think no one's looking." She waited for him to look away, to run away but his eyes were fixed on hers. She reached up and touched his cheek. He closed his eyes, his forehead creased as if in pain.

"Daryl, you told me you were done runnin' from me." He nodded. "You also said you'd try. Everything was going fine the way it was. What happened?" He opened his eyes.

"I can't talk about this. Not now. Let's go back inside. I promise you, I'll try harder alright? But you gotta stop tryin' to make me tell you I feel somethin' when I don't…" The fear on his face was evident. "Why did you do that last night Danielle?" Dani bit her lip.

"Because I don't think the Governor is gonna let me out of this alive. And I didn't want the last time I was…I didn't want it to be…" she struggled over the words. "I just wanted it to be with you." Daryl didn't respond and didn't change his expression. "Are you sorry it happened?" Dani could have kicked herself for asking yet another question that she didn't want answered. After a moment, Daryl shook his head.

"No. I'm not." He looked over her shoulder and saw Tyreese waving them in. "C'mon. They want us back inside." Dani sighed. Dammit. They were just getting somewhere. Daryl saw her expression change and kissed her quickly.

"Hey. Don't start. Everything's fine. And you're not gonna die, you hear me? I'll kill that son of a bitch myself before that happens, alright?" Dani nodded. Together, they headed back for the prison.

* * *

Andrea stopped her car on the road, not far from the turn off to the prison. She stowed the map on the seat next to her and checked around for walkers. She saw one shuffling towards her in the middle of the road. Andrea got out of the car, popped the trunk and pulled out the grabber Miguel had given her. The walker saw her and, growling, picked up the pace. Andrea steadied herself, fighting the fear that welled up inside her.

"Get your shit together Andrea and do this," she ordered herself through clenched teeth. She raised the grabber and held it ready in front of her. When the walker got closer, she lunged and grabbed it around the neck. She struggled with the pole as it fought with her but she tried to keep the image of bringing in a fish on the line.

Andrea carefully walked behind the walker and began walking it in front of her. It tried to turn and reach for her but she was well out of reach. She marched it into the woods, keeping careful watch on her surroundings. A few walkers went past her, not giving her a second glance. When the wind shifted, she caught a whiff of her companion and almost gagged. She stumbled once which almost caused her heart to stop but she kept going. As she walked up a slight hill, she finally saw beyond the trees. The prison. She could see the fence and the building. There were more walkers near her so she picked up speed. She didn't know how long it would be before they would pick up her scent. That had happened sometimes with Michonne and their walkers. But Michonne was quick with her katana. Andrea had her gun and a hunting knife.

She saw a field beyond the trees. There were about a dozen walkers moving slowly towards the prison. At the fence, another dozen were gathered and Andrea could hear their growls as they reached through the fence for the people standing inside. Two large black men were at the fence, stabbing the walkers. One of them, Andrea recognized from the first attack on Woodbury. She froze. She quickly scanned the nearest guard tower but saw no movement. Then she saw Glenn and Carl join the other men at the fence to kill the walkers. Andrea began moving again though slowly and carefully, keeping a watch on both the walkers in the field and the people inside the fence. As she got closer, Glenn saw her and she heard Rick's name being called. Rick and Daryl ran to the fence, guns raised. Andrea kept her eyes fixed on Rick.

"Dammit, let them remember me," she hissed under her breath.


	18. Truth

**A/N All characters belong to the writers and creators of The Walking Dead. Except those that arose from my own twisted imagination.**

**Sorry I've taken so long to post this chapter. It's been really hard to write Andrea.**

**Chapter Eighteen-Truth...  
**

Rick didn't believe it when he saw Andrea walking quickly across the field, pushing a walker in front of her like a guard dog. Michonne had said that Andrea was alive but that she was with the Governor. And the Governor was insane. He lowered his gun slightly but was still ready to use it. Daryl didn't drop his weapon at all. His jaw was set, his eyes narrowed. Rick could feel the tension on all sides. This could go bad very quickly.

"Andrea, I think that's close enough." The walker she had on the…leash was really the only word for it…snapped and tried to lunge towards the fence. Andrea struggled to maintain control and looked over her shoulder at the nearby walkers.

"Rick, we need to talk." Daryl snorted.

"You're talkin' now. No one's stoppin' you." Andrea glanced at him and then back to Rick.

"Please Rick. Let me in so we can talk like civilized people." Rick shook his head.

"Civilized? I think the Governor has shown he doesn't want to be civilized with everything he's done." Andrea looked behind her and saw the walkers had finally caught her scent. She reached into her holster, pulled out her gun and shot her walker. Turning, she shot two nearby walkers and ran for the gate.

"Rick! Please!" She was running hard and paused for a second to shoot another walker.

"Ahh shit." Rick ran towards the gate. "Oscar! Let her in!" Rick could hear Daryl running behind him as Oscar opened the gate. Tyreese, Glenn and Carl ran out to take out the walkers near the gate. Andrea made it inside with Tyreese, Glenn and Carl right behind her. Oscar quickly slammed the gate shut. Rick stopped a few feet away, his gun ready. He knew Daryl was behind him with his gun raised as well. Andrea raised her hands, knelt and quickly lay her gun on the ground.

"I'm unarmed ok? I just want to talk." Rick put his gun in his holster and motioned for the guys to stand down.

"So, let's talk." Andrea wiped her forehead.

"Come on Rick. You know me. We've all been through so much. Can't we sit down and figure out what's going on?" Rick glanced over his shoulder at Daryl who shook his head slightly.

"She's not going inside. Not until we know what she's up to." Andrea frowned at him.

"Daryl I'm not 'up to' anything. I just want to work things out so you all and the people in Woodbury aren't shooting each other every other night." When she saw Daryl's eyes narrow, she added "I'm sorry about Merle. He'd really changed over the past few of weeks." Daryl flinched but quickly regained his composure.

"That's not gettin' you inside." Andrea sighed and redirected her attention at Rick.

"Rick, please? Ten minutes. That's all I'm asking for is just ten minutes." Rick glanced around at the rest of the group and relented.

"We can sit over at the table," he said, nodding towards the table in the yard. Andrea smiled, trying to look relaxed.

"Thank you." As they started to walk up the drive, Rick noticed Daryl limping slightly. Running towards the gate must have re-injured his knee.

"Daryl, why don't you go inside and have Hershel check out your knee?" Daryl shook his head.

"I'm fine." Rick stopped him.

"Daryl, c'mon. We've got help now. You don't have to do it all. Go inside and have Hershel check your knee. We just got you up walkin' around again. I don't want you laid up when I need you, got it?" Daryl glanced at Andrea, then back at Rick and nodded. He turned and walked slowly back to the cellblock, obviously in pain. Andrea watched him leave, noticing that Daryl seemed more mellow than he had been on the farm.

"What happened to Daryl's knee?" Rick waited until they reached the table before answering.

"Daryl went out on a run and Merle ambushed him. He got his leg trapped between his motorcycle and the road when he wrecked, messed his knee up pretty good. Between that and the beating he took in Woodbury, he's lucky he wasn't hurt worse." Andrea sat down and Rick sat across from her. "But I'm guessing you're not here to talk about Daryl's bad knee so let's get to the heart of the matter. What does the Governor want?" Andrea was surprised at Rick's bluntness. Daryl obviously wasn't the only one who had changed.

"Rick, the only thing I know is that the Governor thinks you're a military group. He said that two of your people ambushed a supply group from Woodbury, that they captured two of the people who did it and that you all attacked Woodbury to get them out." She looked from Rick over to Glenn. "Now what really happened?" Rick looked over at Carl. Even after everything the boy had seen and done, Rick didn't want him to hear this.

"Carl, go inside." Carl frowned.

"Dad…" Rick snapped his head around and glared at him.

"Carl, go inside now!" Carl rose and stomped into the cellblock. Once he was inside, Glenn spoke up.

"The two people they captured? It was me and Maggie. We went on a run and Merle took us to Woodbury. We didn't attack anyone. Merle attacked us." He motioned to Rick and Oscar. "Rick, Daryl, Oscar…they saved us. The Governor and Merle were going to kill us. Merle set a walker on me and the Governor threatened to rape Maggie." Andrea shook her head.

"He wouldn't do that." Glenn nodded.

"He did. And you don't even know everything else he and his crew did. Not just to Maggie and myself. He's hurt a lot of people." Andrea closed her eyes, refusing to believe it.

"No. He's keeping people safe. He wouldn't have done any of this if he wasn't threatened."

"He is threatened Andrea," Rick said, cutting her off. "We are proof to people in Woodbury that you can live outside those walls and survive. For whatever reason, he sees that as a threat to his power or credibility." Andrea frowned.

"That's just ridiculous." Rick shrugged.

"Ridiculous or not, it's the truth. And I think you know that or you wouldn't have made the trip here to see for yourself." The voice in Andrea's head, the one that told her that the Governor was not everything she wanted to believe, was screaming that Rick was telling the truth. Already, she could see through so many of Phillip's excuses and explanations.

"Well, what about Danielle Robertson?" A throat cleared behind them. The group turned and saw Danielle and Daryl standing a few feet away. Danielle glared at Andrea.

"What about me?"

* * *

Sasha jumped when they heard the gunshots.

"What the hell?" She started out the door but Maggie stopped her.

"Wait a second. Those were handguns. Maybe there's a breech in the fence. Just wait a second. Someone'll come in and let us know what's going on." She looked up at the second tier and saw Michonne staring out the window. "Michonne, can you see anything?" Michonne nodded.

"Someone's here. I can't see who it is but it looks like just one person. Rick must know them because he let them in the gate." Maggie turned to Sasha.

"See? They're alright." Sasha didn't look convinced. She frowned and sat back down at the table. Beth brought the baby over and Sasha smiled at her. Judith was so tiny and just a miracle. When she first saw Beth with the baby, she had assumed it was the girl's but quickly learned the truth. Beth looked up at Sasha.

"Do you want to feed her?" Sasha thought a moment and then reached over to take Judith from Beth. The baby wrinkled her forehead and opened her eyes. Sasha knew that this little life was worth fighting for. She finally understood what Tyreese had been trying to explain to her as to why they were staying at the prison. The future was not dead. This little girl was proof of that. She fed the baby and rocked her, humming a lullaby her mother had sung to her. When the door opened, they all turned just as Daryl walked in. Dani stood up.

"Is everything ok?" Daryl didn't look happy but he nodded.

"Andrea's back." Maggie, Beth, Carol and Hershel looked stunned. Michonne quickly walked downstairs.

"She's here? By herself?" Daryl nodded. Sasha looked up from the baby, worry creasing her forehead.

"Is my brother alright?"

"Yeah, he's with Rick." He walked past Hershel towards the cells, obviously limping now.

"Hey Doc, can you check out my knee? I messed it up again." Hershel stood, picked up his crutches and followed Daryl. After watching him leave, it finally dawned on Dani who he was talking about.

"Andrea? You mean from Woodbury? That blonde bitch that done shot at us that's with the Governor? What the hell is she doin' here?" Beth spoke up.

"Maybe she's tryin' to do something good? Maybe she found out about us and decided to come back." Dani frowned.

"Or maybe she's just spyin' on us all so she can go back to the Governor and let him know how many people we got here, what kinda weapons we got and maybe even mess with us." Dani was visibly shaken. Maggie and Carol exchanged a look. After the blow up with Daryl, the topic of Dani's stability had been discussed several times and they both tried to keep an eye on her.

Daryl limped back out of the cell, Hershel behind him. Dani quickly turned her attention back on him.

"Are you ok?" Daryl frowned slightly and ignored her question. She got the hint: he didn't want to talk about it right now. She heard Maggie explaining to Sasha, Axel and Allen about Andrea and then heard the door slam. When Carl stomped in, obviously not happy, Daryl called him over.

"What's goin' on out there?" Carl shrugged.

"Andrea's wants to talk to Dad about Woodbury and about what happened to Glenn and Maggie." Danielle looked over at Daryl.

"I'm goin' out there. I want to hear what that woman has to say about that town." Daryl nodded and the two of them walked outside. She could hear Andrea denying some comment Rick made about the Governor. Then, she heard her name mentioned.

"Well, what about Danielle Robertson?" Danielle crossed her arms and cleared her throat. When the group turned in her direction, she thought she saw Andrea go pale.

"What about me?" She walked closer to the table, eyeballing Andrea. Andrea swallowed hard.

"Were you taken prisoner the night your daughter died?" The question so shocked Danielle, she actually laughed.

"What do you mean, taken prisoner? By who? Rick and Daryl?" Andrea nodded. "Hell no. I left Woodbury on my own, running as fast as I could that night." She motioned to the group at the table. "They all took me in. Where'd you get the story I was taken prisoner?"

"The Governor has been telling people that you were kidnapped the night of the first raid and that they had brainwashed you into hating him." Danielle fought the urge to laugh again.

"No, they didn't have to brainwash me into hating anyone. I hated the Governor when he demanded sex in exchange for medicine for Abigail right after she got sick. I wanted to kill him the moment I found out he had sentenced my little girl to die with that phony medicine he and Milton made her take." Andrea's eyes widened in shock. She quickly shook her head.

"No. He wouldn't do that. He had a daughter. Why would he kill yours?" Danielle leaned on the table, a little surprised that neither Daryl nor Rick made a move to stop her from getting too close to Andrea.

"Milton wanted to experiment on her. He wanted to see how the virus affected children so they could work on a cure." The voice of doubt in Andrea's head started ringing a bell. Penny. If this was true, could the Governor have had Milton experiment on another child to try to save his daughter? Danielle saw that Andrea was slowly starting to believe her and continued.

"And as if that wasn't bad enough, I was raped by Cash, Tripp and some of the others. That's why Glenn and Maggie were able to get out. The guards were busy. Merle broke it up but only because he was so pissed that they let their prisoners get away. I blacked out but found out later that your friend Michonne got me free. That's how she was taken prisoner, by helping me. I ran later than night, after Abigail had died." She glared at Andrea. "Any of this sinkin' in honey? Or do you think your man is still this big hero?"

"I admit," Andrea spoke slowly, carefully. "that I may have been too quick to accept Woodbury at face value. Obviously, something is going on there that's wrong. But I still don't understand why we can't settle this…turf issue." Danielle laughed.

"I ain't listenin' to this shit anymore." She backed away. "Seriously honey, you want to be delusional, you go right ahead. I know you were spending your nights in his bed but trust me, you weren't the only one so don't think you're so special." Danielle turned and walked back to the cellblock, calling over her shoulder to Rick "Maybe you can talk some sense into her." Daryl exchanged a look with Rick, nodded, and turned to follow Danielle inside. Rick turned his attention back to Andrea.

"Do you think she was brainwashed into thinking all that happened? She didn't tell you how the Governor sent Merle here with Abigail, as a walker, to torment her and Merle shot Abigail in front of Danielle. It almost killed her. If Daryl hadn't been there for her I think it would have." Andrea's eyes widened.

"You don't mean to tell me that Danielle and Daryl.." Tyreese cut her off.

"Don't change the subject. You keep sayin' you want to stop the fighting but all you've done so far is try to defend this Governor. Now I may be new here, but these people" Tyreese motioned to Rick and Glenn, "you all were obviously friends. I guess I'm not understandin' why you don't want to believe what they're sayin'." Andrea turned on him.

"Because I don't see the Governor the same way as you do, alright? It's safe in Woodbury. The Governor keeps us all safe. Walkers can't get in. People have food, clean water, a warm place to sleep at night. Kids ride their bikes down the street and go to school. We have a doctor and medicine. Hell, they even have pets there. In this world, it's the garden of Eden." Tyreese nodded.

"True. But even the garden of Eden had a snake slitherin' around."

* * *

Walking back into the prison, Dani headed back towards the other holding cell where they had first put her when she arrived. She needed to get herself back in control before she saw everyone else. "This is why I don't like to talk about it," Dani said as she sat on the floor, her hands shaking uncontrollably. Daryl knelt down in front of her.

"You're alright. Nothin's gonna happen to you. I told you that." Dani looked up at him, her eyes fearful.

"He's coming here. You don't know the weapons that he was. He's got tanks, rocket launchers and lord knows what else. He could level this place if he wanted to. Then what happens?" Daryl sat next to her.

"If something happens, we'll get everyone out. We can take off through the woods, probably get our hands on another truck. And we'll head out West towards the Gulf. Maybe try to find your family and build another place. We made it before, we can do it again. We'll just put as much distance between us and Woodbury as possible." Dani looked over at him.

"You'll be out there fighting him. I know you. You won't leave Rick's side. Don't tell me that he didn't have to force you to come back inside when he saw you were hurt again. That's what scares me. I'm not worried about somethin' happening to me. I'm worried the Governor's gonna kill you Daryl." Daryl reached over and tucked her hair behind her ear, his fingers tracing the line of her jaw. The look he gave her quashed the fear she had and brought the desire back up to the surface. _This is definitely not the time for that_ she told herself. Noticing her expression change, Daryl sat back against the wall.

"What do you want?" His voice was low and barely over a whisper. He felt it too, she could tell. He had the same look on his face she had seen in the moonlight when they made love in the courtyard. He probably wouldn't protest too much if she made the first move but she wasn't going to, not yet. Instead, she shook her head.

"Nothing that can be done right now. Later maybe, but now is definitely not the time or the place." He smirked at her.

"You've got a one track mind." He stood and helped her to her feet. Dani wrapped her arms around him and hugged him tight.

"I need you to stay alive Daryl Dixon. I can't lose you too." Daryl pulled back slightly to look her in the eye.

"Don't worry about me, alright?" Dani nodded. Together, they rejoined the group and Dani was surprised to see Andrea sitting at the table with Rick and Carol.


	19. And Consequences

**A/N All characters belong to the writers and creators of The Walking Dead. Except those that arose from my own twisted imagination.**

**Chapter Nineteen-…And Consequences**

"What the hell is she doin' in here?" Daryl was furious. He had figured that Rick would cave and let Andrea inside the prison but he'd hoped for once that his instincts would prove to be wrong. Rick stood and walked over to Daryl and Dani.

"She believes what we told her. She wanted to see everyone and she's unarmed. I'm not letting her out of my sight so you don't have to worry." Dani narrowed her eyes.

"Are you sure?" Rick nodded.

"She wouldn't be in here if I wasn't. Please. I need both of you to come sit down so we can all talk." Dani and Daryl both approached the table cautiously, sitting opposite of Andrea. Andrea reached over and put her hand on Dani's.

"Danielle, I'm so sorry about your daughter. If I had known what was going on, I would have tried to stop it. She was a sweet little girl." Dani pursed her lips and slowly pulled her hand back.

"Thanks." Carol glanced around the table.

"Andrea told us that she thinks she knows what that Milton and the Governor were doing with Abigail. The Governor had a daughter that was bitten. He was keeping her locked in his house. It looks like he was trying to find a cure for his daughter by experimenting on yours." Dani frowned.

"Is that supposed to make me feel sorry for him?" Carol shook her head.

"No but I think it tells us about his mental state. We're dealing with a man who will stop at nothing, even killing an innocent child, to get what he wants. He's even more dangerous than we thought." Daryl nodded.

"Exactly. We already know he's nuts. So why don't we go back there and end this? Why are we sittin' on our asses, listenin' to Blondie here talk, waitin' on this guy to roll up in here with a full goddamn army?" Andrea shook her head.

"Daryl, there are good, innocent people in Woodbury who could get hurt or die. They didn't have anything to do with this. They don't even know what's happening beyond the story that's gone out. That's why I risked so much to come here. The killing has to stop." Daryl looked at her like she was crazy.

"You're preachin' to the wrong choir on this one. We didn't start this war. Merle did when he took Glenn and Maggie into Woodbury. The Governor kept this going. He wants us all dead. And you're a damned fool if you don't see that." He stood and leaned over the table. "You think Woodbury is full of good people? Not a damned one of 'em did anything to help Danielle. Her daughter was murdered and she was gang raped by the Governor's thugs and you're telling me that not a single person outside of the Governor's circle knew anything about it? Bullshit. People had to know. People always know when somethin's goin' down. Hell, when I was growin' up, everyone knew my Dad used to beat my mom and me and Merle. Everyone knew that he would take off for weeks at a time with whatever pair of tits paid attention to him and leave me home alone when Merle was in juvie. Guess what? Everyone knew but no one gave a shit because it didn't affect them. They didn't care that a little kid had to scrounge around for days looking for food because his daddy drank every dime he ever earned. A lot of these people were what you call 'good people' and they didn't care. So don't tell me that people don't see somethin' and turn a blind eye because if it doesn't hurt them." Everyone stared at Daryl. He had never shared something so personal about himself with anyone, except for Dani. She put her hand on his and felt him relax. He slowly sat back down. Andrea noticed he didn't move his hand out from under Danielle's.

"Daryl, I know you're right. When I was an attorney, I saw lots of good people letting bad things happen right under their noses but that doesn't mean that you have to attack Woodbury. When I go back and clear this up…" Carol cut her off.

"Andrea, no. You can't go back there." Andrea smiled at her.

"Carol, I have to. The Governor said if I'm not back in two days, he's going to assume I've been taken prisoner and start an all-out war. I have to go back and tell him that this was all a misunderstanding." Rick stared at her.

"Do you honestly think that will work?" Andrea nodded.

"I'm sure it will. It has to." _Because if it doesn't, _she thought _I'll have to kill Phillip myself._

* * *

Axel walked quietly back into the cellblock. Sasha, Beth, Ben, Hershel & Carl were the only ones in the room. Everyone else was either meeting with Andrea or standing watch outside.

"Are y'all ready for some supper?" When he didn't get an answer, he turned to head back into the kitchen. Sasha joined him.

"Do you need some help?" Axel smiled broadly.

"Sure could. The stew's almost done but I might have missed puttin' somethin' in it." Once they were out of earshot of the rest of the group, Sasha asked,

"Why didn't you and Oscar leave when the rest of them showed up?" Axel shrugged.

"And go where? We couldn't exactly head on home to our loved ones. Nah, Rick and Carol and everyone has been real nice to us, especially lettin' us stay. They talked about throwin' us out on the road but I'm glad they decided against that." They made it to the kitchen and Sasha could smell the bland stew cooking on the stovetop. They didn't have any fresh meat since Daryl and Danielle were the only two who could hunt. Daryl couldn't move fast enough to survive for long in the woods and he forbade Dani from going out alone. They didn't dare make a supply run with Woodbury scouts on the road so they made due with the freeze dried and canned meats they found in the pantry. Sasha had always thought spam was disgusting but didn't turn it down now. It was better than no protein at all. She tasted the stew and tried not to grimace. Sasha glanced up and saw Axel's hopeful face watching her.

"It's…not too bad." Axel shook his head.

"I know it's not good. You know, before all of this with that town, we had squirrel, rabbit, fish and even a turkey. I wish Daryl could go back out huntin' again. He'd always bring home somethin'." Sasha leaned back against the counter and crossed her arms.

"We may have to change that soon and send someone out to hunt. I mean, someone's going to have to go out there. The baby's gonna need more formula in a few weeks. Even rationing like we are, this place doesn't have everything." Axel nodded.

"Maybe after they talk to this Andrea we'll make a run. Maggie, Daryl and Dani did the last big one and stocked up. I think they headed south. We could probably make that run again. Maggie said the store they hit was pretty well stocked. Probably after this Woodbury thing is over, we might do that." Sasha nodded.

"Do you think this will just blow over?" Axel shrugged.

"I don't know. All I know is I'll do whatever Rick wants me to do. I owe that man my life." Sasha nodded slightly.

"Tyreese feels the same way. He keeps saying that he's going to stand with Rick and Daryl no matter what. I just don't know. Everyone is nice and it's good to see kids again but it's hard to throw your loyalties behind people you don't know. It's hard to know who to trust." Axel looked sympathetic as he nodded.

"If you're gonna trust anyone, you can trust Rick. He's good people. If anyone is gonna survive this, it will be him and anyone who stands with him." Sasha didn't look convinced. Axel continued, wanting to reassure her. "Bein' locked up in here, you had to pick your friends carefully. Follow the wrong person and you could die. Oscar and me, we were friends, which really wasn't easy to do in here, you know, given the color thing in prison." He looked embarrassed to bring it up with Sasha but she nodded, encouraging him to continue. "I'm not the smartest man, I admit that. I wouldn'tve been in here in the first place if I was. But we learned who would have your back when things got rough. And Rick, Daryl, Oscar, and everyone else, I know they would help me if I needed it. So I help them anyway I can, even if the only thing I can do is make this god awful stew." Sasha smiled at him. Axel might not be the brightest person around but she could tell how loyal he was. Between Tyreese and talking to Axel, she felt a little better believing that siding with the prison was the right thing to do. Axel handed her the dishes and picked up the stewpot.

"Let's get everyone fed!" Sasha followed him back to the cellblock.

* * *

Tyreese, Oscar and Allen stood in the guard tower keeping watch on the perimeter. Tyreese could see Michonne walking the yard perimeter.

"She doesn't play well with others does she?" he asked no one in particular. Oscar saw he was watching Michonne.

"Don't know much about her. She hasn't been with us long but she helped save Maggie, Glenn and Daryl. I think she tried to save Danielle. She keeps to herself mostly. Haven't talked to her much." Tyreese nodded and picked up the binoculars. He could see movement in the woods.

"Oscar, Allen, you all keep an eye on those trees over there. We got incoming." Allen raised his gun.

"Alive or dead?" Tyreese shook his head. The trees were still moving, even without any wind, but nothing had emerged from the woods.

"Don't know yet. If it's a roamer, it might be hung up on somethin'. It could also be one of them boys from Woodbury. You know they're watchin' us right now." Allen glanced over, shaking.

"How do you know that?" Tyreese snorted.

"Hell, you don't think that someone like that Governor would just let someone leave and not send people after them to watch where they go? Damn straight someone's out there watching." Michonne stopped by the fence and turned to look up at the guard tower. Tyreese caught her eye and pointed towards the movement in the trees. She looked over, nodded back at Tyreese and continued her patrol, moving slowly and keeping an eye on the woods.

"Do you think Andrea is going to stay or head back to Woodbury?" Allen's voice sounded hopeful. Even Oscar picked up on it. Tyreese shot him a warning look.

"Man we talked about that. We're not leaving the prison. You don't want Ben with those people." Oscar looked from Tyreese to Allen.

"What the hell are you getting' at? You want to go with her when she leaves? After we took you in, shared the roof over our heads, shared our food. You say thank you by headin' off with the people that want us dead?" Oscar spun around and pointed the gun at Allen.

"No! You don't need to do that!" Tyreese grabbed the barrel of Oscar's gun. "There's no need for this, Oscar. Allen's on our side, alright? He's just scared for his boy." Oscar lowered his gun slowly. Tyreese nodded.

"That's right. We're all on the same side here. We all want to survive. Right?" He looked from Oscar to Allen. Oscar's jaw was set and it was clear that the only thing that kept him from pulling the trigger was his respect for Tyreese.

"Just get him the hell outta my face." Tyreese nodded again.

"Allen, head inside."

"Tyreese-" Allen stopped his protest when he saw the look on Tyreese's face. He went back inside the guard tower and walked downstairs.

"He starts talkin' like that again," Oscar said, turning back to the woods. "I'll kill him. I'm not lettin' anything threaten this group, you hear me? Make sure he knows that." Tyreese looked down to see Allen heading out into the field.

"It won't happen again."

* * *

Andrea got up from the table.

"I should probably head back now." Carol hugged her tight.

"You can come back anytime. You know that right?" Andrea hugged her back and glanced over at Daryl and Danielle. Their faces were not as welcoming.

"Thanks. I'll get this taken care of. The Governor will listen to me, I know he will." Rick looked doubtful.

"If he doesn't, you get out of there, alright?" Andrea nodded.

Once outside, Tyreese waved at them from the guard tower.

"Hold up," Rick said. "Somethin's up." Tyreese and Oscar headed down from the tower to meet them.

"We got company in those woods." Daryl frowned.

"Who is it?" Oscar shook his head.

"We never saw. There's just movement in the trees." Rick stepped forward.

"Walkers?" Oscar shook his head.

"Can't tell." Tyreese looked at Andrea. "One thing's for sure. You ain't walkin' back to your car." Andrea looked around.

"What am I going to do then? I have to get back there." Tyreese and Rick exchanged a look before Tyreese spoke.

"I'll drive you back to your car." Daryl shook his head.

"Not alone you're not. I'm comin' with you." Dani grabbed his arm.

"The hell you are." Daryl turned to her. She was shaking her head. "You're not goin' back out there Daryl. You're hurt." He reached up and touched her face. His eyes were locked on hers.

"I'll come back. Tyreese will be there. We'll drive her to her car and we'll come right back. I promise." Oscar walked over and put his hand on Dani's shoulder.

"I'm goin' with them. I'll make sure he comes back." She smiled up at him. Daryl looked over at Oscar then back at Dani.

"I promise you." She nodded and he quickly kissed her. He turned back to the group, ignoring the looks of shock. "C'mon. Let's get goin' if we're gonna do this." Andrea, Tyreese and Oscar followed behind him.

* * *

"It's on the road right past the turn off." Tyreese slowed down as the approached the road. Both Daryl and Oscar kept a watchful eye on the surrounding woods. As he turned onto the road, Tyreese saw the truck.

"Ah shit." Daryl saw the truck and the group of six men standing in front of it and next to Andrea's car. It was the same truck that brought Merle and Abigail to the prison the other night. They stopped the car. The Woodbury group raised their weapons.

"What the hell is going on?" Andrea asked as she slowly got out of the car. Cash stepped forward.

"The Governor said if you don't come back, we get to clear out the prison." His smile was cold. "We're here to make sure that gets to happen."


	20. Stranded

**A/N All characters belong to the writers and creators of The Walking Dead. Except those that arose from my own twisted imagination. **

**Chapter Twenty-Stranded**

Daryl and Oscar both tightened their grips on their weapons but stayed in the car. Andrea closed the door behind her and, with her hands raised, walked slowly towards her car.

"Cash, don't do this." She tried to keep her voice steady. She glanced back at the car and saw Tyreese slowly shaking his head. She stopped. "How are you going to explain this to the Governor?" Cash shrugged.

"You got caught in the crossfire. Accidental shooting. No great loss." Andrea blanched but tried not to let Cash see her fear. The boys started towards the car and the three men got out, guns raised. Tyreese spoke first.

"You boys, you don't want to do this. Nobody has to get hurt." Cash started to issue a sharp retort when one of the younger guys called out to Tyreese.

"Hey, didn't you used to play for the Falcons?" Cash whipped his head around.

"Shut up! That don't matter now! He's just as dead as the rest of-" A scream from one of the guys startled everyone. A walker had staggered out of the woods, unnoticed by everyone, and was tearing the throat out of one of Cash's men. Tyreese jumped back into the car and started the engine just as a dozen or so walkers followed the first out of the woods.

"Get in!" Daryl and Oscar didn't have to be told twice but Andrea hesitated. Cash and his men turned and began firing on the walkers, ignoring their original targets. Daryl leaned over the seat.

"What the hell you waitin' for Blondie? C'mon!" Andrea jumped in the passenger seat and Tyreese backed up quickly as the Woodbury group continued to fire on the walkers. Even more walkers were coming down out of the woods. Tyreese saw another of the men taken down by two ravenous walkers as Cash and the others jumped back into the truck. Tyreese turned sharply and floored the car up the road back to the prison. Daryl snorted.

"Well that plan worked great." Andrea glared at him.

"Shut up Daryl."

* * *

Axel was waiting by the gate when the car came roaring back up the drive. He quickly pulled the gate open just in time. When Andrea got out of the car, he was confused.

"Did you change your mind?" No one answered him, save Oscar who shook his head slightly. Tyreese looked around and was relieved that no one was in the field. Rick and Glenn were up in the guard tower but quickly descended when they saw the entire group return. Rick joined the group as the quickly headed inside, keeping a wary eye on the road behind them.

"What happened?" Daryl glanced over his shoulder again before answering.

"Some boys from Woodbury followed her here. Wanted to make sure that all-out war starts between us and that town so they were gonna kill her." Glenn looked surprised.

"How'd you get away?" They got inside the cellblock and bolted the door behind them. Oscar then looked back at Glenn.

"Walkers came out of the woods." They joined the others, who were surprised to see Andrea return and all began talking at once. Tyreese motioned for them to be quiet.

"Everyone hold up. Those boys from Woodbury were waiting for us. They would have killed all of us if those walkers hadn't come out of the woods when they did." Carol sat down by an obviously shaken Andrea.

"Are you alright?" Andrea nodded and tried to erase the fear and worry from her face.

"Yes I'm fine." She looked over at Michonne who was watching her, expressionless. "Michonne, I'm sorry. You were right. We should have left Woodbury right after we arrived." Michonne pursed her lips.

"Thought you were all cozy with the Governor. Didn't want to leave. Hell, you were ready to run right back down there a few minutes ago. You put our men in danger. Now we're stuck with you. And for what? He's comin'. You know that right? He'll kill all of us, including you." Andrea was shocked. In the entire time that she had known Michonne, this was probably the most she had heard uttered from her friend's mouth. Carol looked upset, like she wanted to argue with Michonne but surprisingly, Maggie agreed.

"She's right. What good are you to us? Glenn and I were captured in that town. You know what they did to me, you know what they did to Dani and you know what they did to her little girl. Instead of saying 'You're right. You're my friends. We'll get through this' you said 'Now y'all play nice now. I'm gonna go tell the Governor that we can all be friends.' Well to hell with that Andrea. And to hell with you too." Maggie sat back down next to Dani, obviously demonstrating where her loyalties lay. Glenn moved to stand with her. Daryl crossed his arms and stood behind the two women. Tyreese, Sasha, Beth and Ben also quietly walked over to stand with the group. Oscar quickly joined them while Axel looked torn. He stood in the middle, watching both Carol and Rick for a decision. Allen stood back, away from everyone. It was obvious he didn't have a horse in this race. Hershel remained seated by Carol. Rick, seeing the obvious division in the group, raised his hand.

"Now hold on. We can't start splitting up over this." Sasha spoke up.

"It sounds like we're already split. There's no starting about it. I understand that she's one of your group Rick but she's not with us. She won't defend the prison and side against Woodbury." Andrea stood, glaring at Sasha.

"Who the hell are you to say what I will and will not do?" Sasha shrugged.

"You were very eager to get back there. That's all I'm saying." Andrea turned to Rick and then back to Sasha.

"To protect you. To protect this group. I have to get back there so the Governor won't come here…" Daryl cut her off.

"He's already on his way here. You don't think that idiot Cash came up with that brilliant idea all on his own do you? Man. And you think I'm stupid." He shook his head. "Remember back in Atlanta when we went back to see Guillermo and those guys at the old folks home? You thought they'd all been killed by walkers, even though you saw the bullet wounds. What did I tell you? If you're observant you'd see. You obviously still ain't learned shit. So why don't you pull your head out of your ass and look at what's right in front of you?" Glenn, Maggie and Dani all nodded in agreement. Andrea, hurt, again looked at Rick and Carol before throwing up her hands in frustration.

"What do you want to me say Daryl? I already said I was wrong. And you're right. Cash didn't think of this little plan on his own. I know the Governor told him to come here. Alright? Are you happy now?" Maggie tilted her head.

"That depends." Andrea closed her eyes.

"Depends on what Maggie?"

"It depends on what you intend to do here. We," she indicated the rest of the room. "intend to defend this prison, keep our _family_ safe and kill the Governor. Either you get with that plan or you can start marching your skinny ass back to Woodbury." Andrea shook her head.

"Maggie, that's really not fair."

"I don't give a shit if you think it's fair or not. That's the reality."

"What is this? Your 'you're either with us or against us' speech? I'm offering to help and I'm getting ultimatums? I told you, there are good people in Woodbury. I don't want them hurt or killed." Hershel rose at that and made his way slowly towards the door. When he reached the doorway, he turned.

"I didn't really get to know you back at the farm. You comin' here, I was thinkin' that I should side with Rick and give you a chance. But now, I can't do that." The whole room was quiet, waiting on Hershel. "You see Andrea, what you don't seem to understand is that there are good people here. Better people by the sound of it. And you don't seem to give a good goddamn if any of these people, any of your 'friends', are hurt or killed." With that, he turned and left the room.

* * *

Daryl sat up quickly, sweat pouring off his face, the last traces of the nightmare still vivid in his mind. Earlier, after Hershel had left, they had divided up guard duty and once again, Daryl was kept out of the rotation. It had irritated him, even though Rick had again explained that he was going to be needed soon and should rest his knee. When he and Dani had settled down for the night on the perch, Daryl had still been pissed off. He figured that was probably what brought on the nightmare. Slowly his eyes adjusted to the darkened prison. Reaching over, he felt Dani's shoulder, bare in her tank top. She was lying on her stomach, mere inches from him, her hair spread out over her pillow. He ran his hand down her back and she sighed, shifting in her sleep. The last bits of the dream were fading away but the key part still lingered..he had dreamt the Governor had attacked and Dani was dead. He had seen her body, saw the blood pooling beneath her head, and he had ran to her. When he picked her up in his arms, her eyes opened and she lunged at his throat. That was the part that had woken him up.

Daryl lay back down, turning on his side towards Dani. Her arm was on his pillow and he ran his hand down her shoulder to her fingers. It was like he was touching her for the first time. He was free to explore her body without the embarrassment of getting caught. Her hair smelled fresh, like the woods in the morning. Part of him hoped she stayed asleep so he could continue touching her. Part of him, the part of him that had woken up for the first time in years the other night, wished she would wake up so he could really touch her. As if hearing that thought, Dani lifted her head from her pillow and moved closer to him.

"Daryl?" Her voice was a sleepy whisper. He didn't think she was fully awake and almost let her go back to sleep without any further interruption. But he needed her. He'd never needed or wanted anyone before and he needed her bad now. The fear of her death was still real and he wanted to be as close to her as he could. Without thinking, he sat up pulling her with him, hauling her to her feet.

"Daryl what are you doing?" her voice, more alert now, sounded concerned. Daryl didn't respond, instead pulled her behind him carefully but quickly down the stairs. When they walked past the door, Daryl pulled out his flashlight. In the dim light it cast, he could make out Dani's bewildered face, her forehead creased with worry. She probably thought he was losing it. He wouldn't blame her. He was pretty sure that he had. She dropped his hand and stopped.

"Daryl, please. You're scaring me." He brought his finger to his lips and then motioned for her to follow him.

Dani followed Daryl further back into the prison, concerned. Had he heard something? Should she get Rick or Tyreese? Suddenly, Daryl pulled her into one of the cells and straight into his arms. He was holding her so tight and his whole body was shaking. She was surprised but didn't pull away. She put her arms around him, holding him, stroking his hair.

"Daryl, are you alright?" She felt the slight shake of his head against hers. She pulled back and wished she could see his face but the flashlight, now lying on the cot, was pointing towards the other wall. "What's wrong?" He didn't answer with words. He pushed her back against the wall as he kissed her hard. He twisted one hand into her hair and slipped the other up the back of her tanktop. He pressed his hips to hers, pinning her to the wall. The hand at her back moved slowly to her front, tickling her slightly but she dared not laugh. He brought his hand up to lightly touch her breast before moving his hand away quickly, like a kid getting caught with the cookie jar. The other night, as she rode him in the yard, his hands had not left her hips. It was almost as if he was unsure what to do. She wasn't going to let him get by with that tonight. She pushed back from him and raised her arms over her head. He didn't hesitate and pulled her tank top up over her head. He paused, breathing hard. Dani hated not being able to see his face. She thought he might change his mind but instead, he quickly pulled his shirt off and kissed her again, harder than before. Gone was the timid Daryl that was afraid to touch her. The Daryl that was with her now couldn't keep his hands off of her. His lips moved down her neck, her breasts, her stomach…she closed her eyes and sighed as he began to pull her sweatpants down. Hearing her, Daryl stopped and stood up. He stroked her face and twisted his hand back into her hair. His breathing labored, he pressed his forehead to hers. She reached up and played with his long, thick hair, twirling it through her fingers.

"Daryl, what do you want?" It felt strange to ask him the question he was always asking her. He didn't move.

"You. I want you." Those were the words she'd been waiting for.

"You can have me whenever you want." He pulled back and quickly unfastened his pants. Dani took the moment to untie her sweats and slowly pull them down. When she straightened back up, Daryl didn't waste any more time. He picked her up, holding her against the wall. She wrapped her legs around his waist and her arms around his neck. Daryl waited one second more and thrust inside her. He buried his face into her shoulder, breathing hard as he took in the sensation before he thrust hard again and again. She was so warm, felt so good and he wondered why he had been fighting this for so long. Daryl forgot where they were as he lost himself in her. Her nails dug into his back and she was murmuring his name in his ear.

Dani couldn't move but the friction created from being so open and so close to him was enough. He was taking from her and she didn't care. The other night, she had needed him and took, not caring what he felt. Tonight, it was payback but Dani knew that wasn't the reason for this. He said he wanted her. So she let him take and take. He had one arm wrapped tight around her waist, keeping her against him and braced himself against the wall with the other. Dani ran her hand down his arm, feeling the tension in his muscles, feeling him tremble. He was still nervous, still unsure of what he was doing and was being driven by instinct and a primal desire and she knew it wouldn't be long. Dani didn't care, just feeling him inside her was enough. She felt him come hard and held him as he carefully set her back down but didn't let her go. He was still shaking. Dani held him against her.

"Daryl, are you ok?" Daryl pushed away from her and grabbed his pants. He sat on the cot and began getting dressed. Dani pulled up her sweatpants and put her tank top back on. She sat next to him on the cot. "Daryl, talk to me please." From this angle, the light hit his face and she could see a mix of sweat and tears. She reached over and touched his face. "Daryl, why…" He pulled away.

"I'm fine. Just leave me be." Dani ignored him and kneeled in front of him.

"Daryl, you woke me up, dragged me in here, fucked me against the wall and now you're telling me to just let you be? What happened?" He pulled his shirt on and looked down at her. He reached down and ran his fingers down her face.

"I dreamed you were dead. I woke up thinkin' I was gonna lose you and I can't…" Daryl ground the tears away. "I can't lose anyone else, especially not you. I need you Danielle." Dani reached up and brushed his hair off his face.

"Daryl I'm here." He leaned over and kissed her softly. "Do you want to go back now?" Daryl nodded. Dani stood but Daryl didn't follow.

"I didn't hurt you did I?" She frowned.

"Of course not. Why would you think that?" He shrugged and looked away.

"I wasn't exactly gentle with you." Dani bit her lip to stifle a giggle. It was so sweet of him to be worried and it wouldn't do to let even a smile slip through at that moment.

"Daryl I'm fine. You didn't hurt me. I liked it. A lot." His face was a mix of surprise, relief and pride.

"Really?" She nodded and held out her hand.

"Come on. Let's get some sleep before everyone wakes up." Daryl picked up the flashlight and they walked out of the cell. Walking back towards the cellblock, they both heard the noise. Daryl handed Dani the flashlight and pulled his knife. They walked slowly towards the sound, which came from around the corner, exactly between them and the cellblock. Dani could see another light on the wall. Knowing it wasn't a walker, Daryl lowered the knife but kept it ready. Glenn and Maggie surprised them as they rounded the corner, both of them armed. Glenn looked from Daryl to Dani and suppressed a grin.

"What were you guys doing?" Daryl glanced back at Dani, her cheeks a bright red, then turned back to Glenn. He'd given Glenn enough shit about the times Glenn volunteered to keep night watch in the tower with Maggie, knowing full well they weren't going to be watching anything but each other.

"Heard a noise. Thought we'd check it out." Daryl was surprised his voice sounded steady. Glenn glanced again back at Dani then to Daryl.

"You heard a noise huh?" Daryl frowned.

"Yeah. That's what I said. What are you doin' back here?" Glenn grinned at him.

"We actually did hear something." Daryl nodded and reached back, grabbing Dani's hand.

"Yeah, well, the second cell on the left is clear." He pulled Dani with him and heard Maggie and Glenn laughing behind them. When they were safely back on the perch, Dani curled up next to him and propped her head up on one hand.

"You're terrible." Daryl couldn't see her in the darkness but he could almost feel her smile.

"Thought you said you liked it." The smack on the arm he received was gentle but firm. He heard and felt her turn her back to him and lie down. He curved his body against hers, his stomach against her back, brushed her hair back and kissed her neck right below her ear. He heard her sharp intake of breath and smiled in the dark. He pulled her back into his arms.

"Go to sleep," he said, knowing damn well that if they got started he'd want to take her again. Whatever she had woke up in him seemed to want to make up for lost time but logic and rational thinking were still in full control of his brain, if not completely in control of other parts of his body. He buried his face in her hair, smelling the combination of shampoo, sweat and musk. The rhythmic breathing coming from her a few minutes later told him she was sleeping again. Only then did he finally drift off. She was his and for the first time in his life, he felt whole.


	21. So It Begins

**A/N All characters belong to the writers and creators of The Walking Dead. Except those that arose from my own twisted imagination. **

**Yes, I started writing this after "I ain't a Judas"…it completely inspired me. It also made me happy that I was on a similar track with the writers in that the Governor in this fic & on screen were both making the excuse of "we were attacked first" and how Andrea wanted to negotiate a peace deal between the prison & Woodbury. If things hadn't been filmed so long ago, I might have said "Hey! Are y'all reading this?" Anyway, enjoy this next chapter. **

**Chapter Twenty One-So It Begins**

Milton rushed into the Governor's study, his face a mask of worry.

"Cash, Tripp and a few others went down to the prison." The Governor didn't look up from the notebook where he was scribbling information. Milton frowned. "Didn't you tell them not to go there? To wait until Andrea returned?" The Governor looked up at Milton.

"The last count we did, we had about sixty able-bodied adults right?" Milton was stunned.

"I think so. If you count the teenagers. Governor what are you working on? We have a possible problem here…" The Governor slammed the notebook shut, cutting him off.

"I don't see it as a problem. Cash and his boys left to escort Andrea home. That's all." Milton could hear a coldness in his voice, something that hadn't been there before.

"Governor, I don't think…" The Governor slammed his hand down on his desk and glared at Milton.

"I didn't ask what you think! I'm telling you what the reality is now. No more garden parties. No more of the easy life. These people that live here, they will start pulling their weight and learning what life is like out there. They need to be grateful for what they have, for what I have given them." He looked back down at his notebook. "They need to show their appreciation, their dedication, to this town." Milton swallowed hard.

"What are you suggesting they do?" The Governor picked up a pen and flipped through a few pages of his notebook.

"First of all, every man and woman over the age of thirteen will be armed at all times. I'll need Martinez to start training them, since Cash is busy with other duties." Milton was stunned.

"You're talking about arming children." He was rewarded with another cold stare.

"The line between child and adult has been erased in this world. If they're old enough to hold a gun, they're old enough to use it in battle." Milton could feel things were spinning out of control. He wished that Andrea was here. She could probably talk Phillip down from whatever he was planning.

"Battle? What battle? We're not at war." Phillip stood and walked to the window. Outside, people were gathering in groups, sharing the latest gossip about the attacks and the Governor. Some people had tried to leave the town but had been stopped by Martinez and his crew on the wall. When Phillip spoke, his voice was calm again.

"Of course we're at war Milton. We've been attacked. We've had blood spilt in our streets. We cannot let that go without a response. We need to go to that prison and level it to the ground. Make those people pay for destroying our way of life." Milton blanched.

"I think we should wait for Andrea to come back before we do anything rash. If those are her friends, maybe we can work something out." Phillip glanced over his shoulder at Milton.

"There's the door. You can join her there if you wish." Milton saw he was serious and he did not want to leave Woodbury. If he did, it was a death sentence for him. He wouldn't be welcome at the prison even if he did make it. Danielle Robertson would kill him on sight for what he had done to her daughter. He hadn't allowed himself to think about it at the time, had kept his distance as a scientist but he knew that Phillip had murdered Abigail Robertson and he, Milton Mamet, was culpable in that murder. He pushed that thought far from his mind and tried to focus on the here and now.

"Governor," he tried again, "do you really think it's going to come to a full scale war? Some of these people, they'll die. They'd never have survived on the outside if it wasn't for this town." Milton knew he was speaking as much for himself in making that statement as he was for others. Phillip turned and walked back to his desk. He handed the notebook to Milton.

"Make sure that these people report to Martinez by tomorrow afternoon. I'm counting on you Milton. We need to pull together if we're going to win." Milton took the list of names, closed his eyes, and nodded. He quietly walked to the door, his head bowed in defeat.

"And Milton." Milton turned to see the Governor staring at him intently. "Tell Martinez to let me know as soon as Cash and the rest get back. We need to go on a run first thing in the morning."

* * *

Carol, Axel, Carl and Oscar were the first ones awake and decided to get started fortifying the inner prison walkways and access to the guard tower. They had already ripped up the tables from the cafeteria and gathered a number of wooden pallets that had held supplies. Carol had no trepidation working alongside the two former convicts. Oscar had more than proven himself when he sat watch over little Abigail's body that night and Axel was so eager to pull his weight around the prison. They talked as they worked, discussing their former lives and smiling at the irony that the position they were currently in were infinitely better than where they were before the world went to hell. Carl worked hard to keep up, pulling his weight and behaving every bit the young man he was becoming. Axel was in awe of the kid, how he behaved and silently wished that he could have had a chance to have a son like him.

Tyreese stood in the guard tower with Allen, watching the four of them pulling together and laughing. The touch of normalcy made him sad. Being in prison was now his life, and a better life than it was on the outside. Allen was starting to doze off and Tyreese thought about waking him but decided against it. Allen really wasn't pulling his weight at all, Tyreese had to admit that. He tried to chalk it up to the fact that the poor guy was probably still mourning his wife but he knew that Allen would never fit in. Tyreese saw movement in the trees and raised his binoculars. He couldn't tell if it was a roamer or another of the Woodbury scouts but there was something out there, just like there had been the day before.

Rick woke when he heard Judith stirring. He picked up his daughter. His daughter, he had to remind himself. This was not Shane's baby. She was his baby, Lori's baby. Sometimes he flashed to the phone conversation he had with Lori and Amy and Jacqui and Jim. He thought that he could see Lori out of the corner of his eye at times but she was never there. He tried to keep those thoughts to himself, lest anyone think he was losing it. Rick prepared Judith's bottle and fed his baby girl. Beth and Hershel joined him, starting the pot of oatmeal that would be breakfast for everyone

Michonne left the cellblock, walked across the field and sat in the overturned bus. She had to get away from Andrea. She was so angry, so hurt and betrayed by the woman she had called friend. Rick was planning on giving Andrea one of the warden's cars to drive back to Woodbury today. Michonne doubted that Andrea could say anything that would make the Governor change his mind. The man was crazy. And he would kill them all if they didn't kill him first, she knew that for a fact.

Maggie and Danielle sat at the table to check the weapons. They needed to make sure everything was in proper working order at all times and Rick had decided that they needed to do that first thing that morning. Glenn came in for breakfast, followed by Daryl, Sasha and Ben. Danielle looked up at Daryl when he walked in and smiled. The shy smile she got in return relaxed her, especially seeing the smile reach his eyes the moment he saw her. She caught Maggie watching them both. Maggie winked at her and both girls continued their weapons inspection.

Andrea stood back in the doorway. She felt like an outsider, like she didn't belong. She was going back to Woodbury, alone this time. It hurt to know that no matter what was said, they wouldn't accept her as one of them any longer. She had made her choice when she decided to stay in Woodbury and have a life. Maybe that was stupid cowardice on her part but there was no going back on it now. She had to try to stop this war between Woodbury and the prison.

* * *

"Rick, I'm really sorry for the way everything has been." Rick looked around the yard and the woods beyond. He knew it was risky for them to be out in the courtyard, especially with Woodbury on the offense. He had given her one of the warden's cars, all gassed up and ready to go, so she didn't have to worry about getting her car and possibly getting stopped by Cash's crew. Rick didn't think that Andrea would stand a chance if they were waiting for her but he was truly beyond caring at this point. He was trying to get the prison ready, keep it together. And he was trying to ignore the persistent shadows that were creeping into his vision. Shadows that looked remarkably like Lori. It was bad enough that he could hear her voice speaking his name as clear as day more often now. He looked down the drive at Axel who was waiting to open the gate and then to Andrea.

"Take care." Andrea nodded and Rick turned to walk away. He heard the gate open and close and the sound of the tires on gravel fading away. He looked up at the guard tower and saw Tyreese. He waved his hand and Tyreese nodded in response. Rick turned to wait for Axel, remembering that the man was unarmed. He had admitted to Rick that he was actually afraid of guns and was honestly afraid he would shoot off his foot if he were given one. Axel smiled at Rick when he reached him.

"Gonna be another hot one today, soon as this haze burns off." Rick nodded. The humidity was already high and it wasn't even nine in the morning. Axel looked around the yard. "You know Rick, I've been thinking…"

The bullet that went through Axel's skull silenced that thought forever.

**A/N Sorry that this is a short one but I wanted to get this up. I tried to keep Axel alive as long as I could but needed to start killing off some people, which makes me sad. **

**And I want to say thank you to everyone for sticking with this and for the reviews. =) I really appreciate the support and feedback. **


	22. Ambush

**A/N All characters belong to the writers and creators of The Walking Dead. Except those that arose from my own twisted imagination. **

**TRIGGER WARNING. I've finally written a tiny bit from Cash's POV and it ain't pretty. **

**Chapter Twenty Two-Ambush**

When Axel's blood hit Rick in the face, it took him a moment to register what had just happened. He saw Axel drop and then heard the gunfire but it sounded muffled. Everything was moving in slow motion. Tyreese was screaming something at him from the guard tower, motioning him to get down as he fired into the woods. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a truck parked just beyond the tree line. Someone was pointing a gun towards the prison. Rick turned and started to run back towards the prison, hearing the sounds of bullets rushing past him. He saw the door to the cellblock open and watched Daryl and Oscar run out, take cover behind the barricades they had built and start returning fire. Finally, the world caught up and he could see everything in real time. The noise was deafening. Rick made it to the barricades, braced himself and started returning fire in the direction of the shooters.

"How many?" Rick yelled over to Daryl. Daryl turned his head slightly and held up his hand and then three fingers. Eight shooters that he could see. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Maggie and Danielle duck down behind another barricade and begin to open fire. A roar of a truck engine behind them startled Rick and he saw Glenn and Hershel fly past in the truck, both firing towards those in the field. Rick heard more gunfire from the overturned bus and saw Michonne. They clearly had the advantage. Glenn spun the truck sideways against the gate, blocking it. Both Glenn and Hershel leaned out of the truck windows, shooting point blank at the gunmen, taking out two.

Danielle rose up slightly as she looked at the truck from Woodbury. It was him. The Governor. Andrea wasn't lying. That son of a bitch had survived. She saw he kept himself back and barricaded behind the truck, leaving his men open targets. The coward. She aimed carefully and fired directly at the truck, taking out a headlight and causing the smug bastard to duck down. She didn't have time to gloat as bullets ricocheted off the barricade and she dropped down flat to her stomach. Rick motioned for her and for Maggie to stay down as their attackers opened fire, aiming at the girls. Tyreese stepped out of the tower control room onto the catwalk and swept the yard, dropping two more. He dropped back into the tower room as he came under fire.

The Governor smiled as he watched the prison group dive for cover. The scared little rats. They should be afraid. He had an army. He had the power. They should never have challenged him and just given up the prison. At least, they should never have given shelter to that Danielle and Michonne. He blamed Merle for letting them both escape. But he learned that the old saying was true: if you want something done right, you have to do it yourself.

Cash carefully drove the truck over the pile of bricks at the back of the prison. He could feel the tires slip but keeping the truck in four wheel drive kept them from flipping over. It was easier than they had thought to get on to the prison grounds. Tripp looked worried as he noticed the number of biters.

"There's more here then we figured there was." Cash shrugged.

"So what?" He held up his gun. "It's not like we can't handle it." One of the two younger guys in the back looked like he was about ready to piss himself. Neither of the boys were over seventeen but the Governor had ordered them with Cash and Tripp anyway, not wanting to spare Martinez or one of the other better trained men and women in Woodbury.

They drove until they reached the first gate. Making the two teenagers guard their backs, Cash and Tripp used the bolt cutters to break the lock and open the gate. Cash tried one of the doors on the other side of the gate and found it open. He turned to Tripp.

"Y'all get in there. Try to find out where they're all holed up." Tripp nodded and motioned to one of the teenagers to follow him. They closed the door behind them, leaving Cash and the other boy to continue towards the front of the prison. There were few biters here. Obviously, the prison crew had cleared the place out. For some reason, Cash was annoyed by this. How in the hell did a few people clear this whole prison? Obviously, it wasn't entirely secure. The backside was still crawling with biters. The downed fence was impossible to fix. When Merle was in charge, Cash had gone with him many times to inspect the prison and keep an eye on the group there for the Governor after they learned that people were there. Cash hoped he could find that little bitch Danielle and kill her. It unnerved him when the little slut's new boyfriend, Merle's brother, had asked Cash if he had been the one that raped Danielle. It wasn't rape if it was the camp slut, just like what happened last summer wasn't rape when he and their old group raided that camp with that guy and his two daughters. He didn't think about the other times before the world went to shit. He just knew that bitch deserved to die for spreading lies. He could hear the gunfire from the front of the prison. Before he could say anything to the kid, Cash heard him scream. He turned and saw the kid being taken down by three biters. Leaving him, Cash continued towards the front of the prison.

Oscar could see the entire yard from his position. Dani had taken a risk rising up to aim for the Governor and was now pinned down. She was trying to unjam her weapon, a panicked look on her face. Maggie had moved into another position and Dani was on her own. Daryl, seeing her like that moved to go to her but Oscar stopped him.

"I'll cover her." Daryl nodded. Oscar waited until there was a break in gunfire and made a run for it. He knelt by Dani.

"You alright?" Her eyes were wide.

"I don't know what I did. I can't clear the jam." They both ducked down as more bullets hit the ground beside their barricade. Oscar positioned himself so he blocked Dani while she continued to work on her gun and fired in the general direction of their attacker. He couldn't see everything as clearly as he could from his other position. As he opened fired again, he felt two sharp pains hit him in his back and another in his shoulder. He fell against Danielle.

Rick turned when the gunshots started behind them. He saw Oscar go down and then saw someone standing just beyond the corner of the building, firing at their backs. He heard Daryl yell Danielle's name as he opened fire on the new shooter, cutting him down. Rick heard the truck start up and saw the dust trail as it sped back down the road. The attack was over, for now.

As soon as the shooting stopped, Daryl ran to the barricade where Oscar and Dani had been, Rick right on his heels. His nightmare was coming true. He pulled Oscar off of Dani. Her shirt was covered in fresh blood and she wasn't moving. Her hair was slick with blood and there was more on the ground. Daryl was vaguely aware that Rick was checking on Oscar but could only focus on Danielle. He carefully touched her face, afraid to see if she was still breathing, still alive.

"Dani?" She groaned and brought her hand to her head. It wasn't until she moved that Daryl realized he'd been holding his breath.

"Daryl? What happened?" She opened her eyes and looked confused. "Where's Oscar?" Daryl looked over to Rick. Rick shook his head.

"Oscar's gone." Dani's eyes widened in shock.

"No he was just here!" She tried to sit up but couldn't. Her head throbbed from where she had hit it against the ground. Rick dragged Oscar's body a short distance away and fired a single shot into his head. Oscar was one of their own and he wasn't going to let him turn. Daryl helped Danielle to her feet just as the truck pulled up. Glenn, Michonne and Hershel got out. Rick looked nervously at the woods. Tyreese joined them.

"They're gone. I don't know how many we got but the rest of them took off right after that guy came out." Tyreese nodded towards the kid lying on the ground. Hershel and Maggie helped Dani into the cellblock while the rest of the group went to check on the intruder. He was dead, that much was apparent. And Daryl recognized him.

"It's Cash." Rick glanced up at him.

"Are you sure?" Daryl nodded.

"He was one of the ones that dragged me to the Governor in Woodbury." He turned to survey the woods, uneasy about the silence. "They left right after he started shooting. Like it was a signal or something." He looked down between the buildings and saw two walkers heading towards them. "Ah shit." He raised his gun and fired.

* * *

When they were all barricaded back in the prison, everyone was in shock. Losing Axel and Oscar like was a blow to the group. The prisoners had more than proven themselves and they were family. They wanted to bury the bodies but didn't dare. No doubt Woodbury scouts would be watching. The fact that Cash had snuck in had disturbed Rick. He and Daryl both knew that there was no way that Cash made it in alone. After dispatching the two new walkers, they had taken the truck around to the back of the prison to check for other invaders. They found another truck in the back, found the open fence and another fresh body being consumed by walkers. Cash's buddy no doubt. They re-secured the fence and killed the walkers on their side of it before returning to the cellblock.

"We knew the back fence was down," said Glenn. "There was nothing we could do to fix it." Rick was pacing, furious.

"We should have had someone watching the backside of the prison. We knew it was vulnerable. We still don't know if anyone else was in that truck. They could have gotten inside and are sneakin' around the tombs, just waitin'." Rick shook his head. "No more going outside, no more runs through the prison, no more acting like we're not at war." Daryl approached him cautiously.

"Rick, we've got watches at the towers. We need to go into the prison and search for signs of anyone back there." Rick nodded but Beth looked fearful.

"If those guys from Woodbury can get in, that means walkers can get in. That whole place could be filled." Tyreese agreed.

"She's right. When we got in here, they were everywhere. Some of them were prisoners but there were a lot of civilian roamers back there. We're safe up here for now but who knows what it looks like now, especially with all that gunfire. If we go down there, we need to be prepared for the fact that we can't push through and get out as soon as we can." Maggie raised her hand.

"I'm in." Dani raised hers too. Glenn shook his head and Daryl narrowed his eyes at Dani, shaking his head slightly.

"Maggie, no. And Dani, you're in no position to go in there." Maggie frowned at Glenn.

"Why not? You need bodies back there, especially if there's a herd of walkers in the tombs." Glenn started to speak and then stopped, looking frustrated with himself. He looked almost on the verge of tears.

"Maggie, we need you here in case something goes wrong and we don't come back. You, Sasha and Michonne…if something happens and we," he paused to indicate Rick, Daryl, Tyreese and himself, "don't make it, the rest of the group needs you." Maggie nodded and blinked back tears. She didn't want to think about losing Glenn, having to live without him. She walked over to him and kissed him. He held her tight, not wanting to let her go but knowing it was necessary.

"Glenn." Glenn turned to Daryl who motioned towards the door. Rick left first, followed by Tyreese and Glenn. Daryl paused one moment to look back at Dani. He nodded at her and she mouthed the words "Come back." He couldn't respond and followed Glenn into the prison. Beth locked the door behind them.


	23. Down In The Dungeon

**A/N All characters belong to the writers and creators of The Walking Dead. Except those that arose from my own twisted imagination. **

**Thank you to all the new followers and thank you to everyone who has left reviews. Know that you are loved & the only reason I'm still fighting writers block to keep this going!**

**Chapter Twenty Three-Down in the Dungeon**

Rick pushed ahead, leading the group deeper into the prison. He heard movement ahead and raised his hand. Three walkers rounded the corner and were quickly dispatched. Rick glanced over his shoulder at Tyreese.

"Did you all come in this way?" Tyreese shook his head.

"It was further back. I still don't know how we got as far as we did. It's a maze down here." The continued down the hallway. A few of the locked doors leading to different areas of the prison were jammed with walkers. Rick was thankful that the guards, even in the midst of a riot and outbreak, had the common sense to stick with protocol and keep the place mostly locked down. That probably saved them. Turning a corner, they saw a shadow along the wall, moving away from them. They could also hear whispered voices. Rick turned around and nodded to Daryl who moved to the front, crossbow raised. As they got closer they could make out the voices. Rick and Tyreese turned off their flashlights.

"Goddammit you little chicken shit. Grow a set of balls and go out there. Move quick, keep your eyes open and them biters won't git ya." The first voice, despite the bravado, betrayed the fear of the speaker. The second voice sounded younger and the boy didn't even bother to hide his fear.

"I-I've n-n-never k-k-illed a b-b-biter before Tr-tripp. I d-d-don't even know h-h-how this g-g-gun w-w-works." They could see from the shadows that one of them had grabbed the other. A young kid, probably no older than sixteen, was shoved out from around the corner.

"Go on. Go check it out. I'll back ya up." The kid looked back around the corner, raised his gun and started to slowly make his way down the hall towards the group. The darkness was their camouflage. Between the darkness and the kid's fear, he wouldn't see them until he was right on top of them. He held a large flashlight in his other hand but had obviously forgotten it was there since he made no move to raise it or turn it on. Daryl crept up closer to the kid. Five steps more and he would have him. The kid stopped and looked over his shoulder. Daryl took that chance and grabbed the kid, clamping his hand over the kid's mouth. The kid dropped the flashlight. He fought against Daryl but was no match for Daryl's strength.

"Quit moving," he hissed in the kid's ear. "I ain't gonna hurt you if you just keep still, got it?" The kid nodded vigorously and quit struggling but Daryl didn't loosen his grip or take his hand away from the kid's mouth. They watched as the other intruder, Tripp, peeked cautiously around the corner, his gun at the ready.

"Jeremy?" When there was no answer, he took a few cautious steps down the hall. Tyreese and Glenn stepped in front of Rick and the movement made Tripp jump back.

"Oh shit!" Glenn smiled.

"Oh shit is right." Tripp didn't fire his gun. Like a true coward, he ran away. Tyreese caught up to him quickly and tackled Tripp to the ground. He wasn't as out of shape from his football days as he had thought. Tyreese hauled Tripp to his feet, keeping his arms pinned behind him. Rick walked up to him and looked him square in the eye.

"How many of you are there in here?" Tripp looked over and saw Daryl holding on to Jeremy and realized he was sunk.

"Just us two I think. Cash and that other kid, Brad or Chad or somethin' were supposed to come in later but I think they done took off." Rick shook his head.

"They're both dead." Tripp's eyes widened and he shrank back from the coldness in Rick's eyes.

* * *

Andrea pulled up to the Woodbury gate and waited for it to open. The older man who reminded her of Dale was gone. Instead, a brunette woman in her early thirties sat watching her. Andrea waved but the woman didn't move. Looking around and not seeing any walkers nearby, she got out of the car. As she approached the wall, the woman drew down on her. Andrea raised her hands.

"I'm not armed. I'm just coming back." The woman didn't drop her weapon.

"I know who you are. And I'm not opening this gate until Martinez gets here." Andrea frowned.

"What's going on?" The woman didn't respond and turned as Martinez climbed up the wall. He glared down at Andrea.

"You came back." She was confused by his tone. He sounded disappointed.

"Yeah. I'm back. So how about opening the gate?" Martinez glared at her for a moment and then nodded to the woman. They climbed down from the wall and Andrea got back in to the car. As soon as the gate opened, she drove through. She got out of the car and turned to face Martinez.

"Where's Philip?" Martinez exchanged a look with the woman.

"He's busy." Andrea's eyes narrowed.

"Fine. Is Milton in his lab?" Without waiting for an answer, she started into town. Martinez followed her.

"You've been gone almost two days you know." Andrea stopped walking and looked at him.

"I was gone one day. I would have been back yesterday if Cash hadn't tried to ambush me at the prison." She saw Martinez shift slightly. "You didn't happen to know anything about that did you?" Martinez glared at her.

"I wasn't there was I? How am I supposed to know what happened?" Andrea nodded, not believing him.

"Right." She started again towards Milton's lab.

"Just so you know," she stopped when she heard Martinez call after her. "That prison is getting cleaned out. One way or another, they're gonna have to leave or die." She looked at him over her shoulder.

"It doesn't have to be that way. In fact, it shouldn't be that way. Those are people who just want to live and survive, like us." Martinez shrugged.

"I'm just telling you how it is." Andrea pursed her lips, and practically ran to Milton's lab.

* * *

Tyreese and Daryl dragged the Tripp and Jeremy to the other cellblock they had cleared for Axel and Oscar. After the prisoners had joined them in cellblock C, they hadn't bothered to return to this one. The walls were still covered with blood and the stench from the corpses on the higher tiers was almost too much to handle. Daryl wrinkled his nose against the smell, remembering that Axel and Oscar had a hard time disposing of the bodies. He looked over at Tyreese who was also trying to not gag. Jeremy started to dry heave and Daryl backed away from him while still keeping him under control. Tripp, a rather interesting shade of green, laughed.

"Pussy." Tyreese jerked on his arm.

"You don't speak until I say you can." Tripp glared at him over his shoulder.

"You don't tell me what to do ni…" Tyreese slammed him down into the ground and knelt on Tripp's back.

"I'm going to give you the opportunity," Tyreese's voice was calm but as cold as ice "to forget that particular word that you were plannin' on using." Tripp didn't speak and Tyreese hauled him to his feet.

"Now. Do you have anything you would like to say to me?" Tripp glared at him and you could practically hear him screaming at Tyreese in his mind but he kept his mouth shut. Instead, he slowly shook his head no. Tyreese nodded at him.

"That's what I thought." He shoved Tripp into one cell and slammed the door shut, locking it with the keys. Daryl did the same with Jeremy and they walked back into the hallway just outside the cells, away from the smell of rot and death.

"Do you think it's a good idea to bring Dani in here?" Tyreese was worried about Rick's plan to use Danielle to rile up their captives. Daryl hadn't like the idea at all but kept his mouth shut about it.

"If anything goes bad, I'll get her out." Tyreese nodded.

"Maybe with you in here, she'll be ok." Daryl poked his head through the door at the sound of Tripp's whispered instructions to Jeremy.

"Y'all shut the hell up in there unless you want the shit beat outta ya!" The whispering immediately stopped.

"I'm about ready to just kill this little asshole right now." He looked up at Tyreese. "You know, that guy in there was one of the ones that…did things to Dani. If we didn't need him to talk, I would've kicked the shit out of him and then blown his damn head off." Tyreese glanced at the doorway and shook his head.

"That would be to quick death. Guys like that, they deserve to die slow." Daryl nodded and looked up as Rick and Glenn arrived with Dani. Her jaw was tense and she was chewing on her lower lip. Daryl was surprised that she hadn't drawn blood. She was staring at the floor, almost hunched over in defeat. Immediately defensive, Daryl went to her. He cupped her chin and raised her face to his. In her eyes was real fear. He turned on Rick.

"What did you do to her?" Rick looked surprised.

"Daryl…I didn't…" He tried to protest but Daryl cut him off.

"She ain't goin' in there Rick. Just being this close to this guy is about to send her over the edge. I won't let you force her to do this." Glenn was pissed.

"Daryl, after what Dani's been through, after what Maggie went through, do you actually think that either Rick or I would _force_ either of them to do anything?" Daryl put his arm around her shoulders and started to lead her back to the cellblock.

"I'm taking her back." Dani stopped.

"Daryl, no it's ok. I'm fine. I have to face this." He frowned at her.

"You sure?" Dani nodded and walked back towards the cellblock where Tripp was held. He looked up at her as she walked in the room.

"Well, well, well. Lookin' good as ever darlin' even if you aren't on your back." Both Rick and Tyreese restrained Daryl as Dani walked straight to the cell, her head raised and her eyes narrowed. He stood and walked to the cell door and leaned against the bars.

"What the hell are you doing here Tripp? Playin' Cash's errand boy again now that Merle's dead? I can't believe the Governor put you two inbred idiots in charge instead of someone like Martinez. He had his shit together and an IQ above seventy." Tripp laughed at her.

"You're the dumb one sugar, thinkin' you could just waltz in here and get under my skin. It'll take more than your smart mouth to scare me." Dani raised her eyebrow, reached behind her under her shirt and pulled the Colt she had tucked into the waistband of her jeans. She stuck the barrel of the gun against Tripp's forehead. His smirk disappeared. She cocked the gun.

"Challenge accepted."

"Dani!" Rick's voice carried a warning note but she didn't turn to look at the men behind her. She was focused on the one in front of her, enjoying the power she felt from his fear. It was payback, finally. And she wanted him to die. Every voice in her head was screaming at her to pull the trigger and split the bastard's head wide open.

"Listen up, honey. You're my bitch until I say otherwise and you're gonna do some talkin'. First thing I want to know is why does the Governor want us dead?" Tripp thought about making some smart comment but thought better of it when he looked into her eyes. They were cold and he knew that she was seconds away from putting a bullet in his brain.

"I don't know. He ain't never said. We knew people done cleaned this place out right before Merle brought in that girl and that Chinese kid over there." He motioned to Glenn. Dani rolled her eyes.

"He's Korean you idiot." Tripp swallowed hard.

"Whatever. You know that part now. You were in Woodbury when that done happened. That's all I know." Dani shook her head.

"But why spy on the prison at all? After Maggie and Glenn were rescued, why didn't y'all ride in here that night like what happened today?"

"We had that other girl. That one that showed up with Andrea. We caught her that night tryin' to leave with you and Merle wanted to know about the prison and his brother. Merle convinced the Governor that his brother would join him as soon as he found out Merle was alive. We was also lookin' for you. The Governor wanted you found and killed. We watched y'all in the yard actin' like y'all were safe and shit. Doin' laundry, plantin' your garden, all that domestic shit. Cash wanted to take you out a couple of times but Merle told him not to, that it was too risky when we didn't know what weapons y'all had. That other girl never said two words to any of us. We wanted to kill her but Merle said no." Dani frowned.

"Why did Merle keep Michonne alive?" Tripp shrugged.

"Don't know. He never said."

"Ok, then why did you try to kill Andrea?" Tripp smiled.

"The Governor's bimbo? Hell, he told us to. He didn't want her comin' here. Said she betrayed him and Woodbury. He was pissed off we didn't do it." Dani smiled.

"And that's why he put you and Cash on scoutin' detail today with a couple of kids. He knew none of y'all would make it." Tripp blanched as he realized that what she said was true.

"I'm done talkin' to you bitch. If you're gonna kill me then go ahead and do it but I ain't tellin' you shit." Dani glared at him, released the hammer and lowered the gun. She slowly walked over to Jeremy's cell. He was just a kid and he was scared to death. She didn't bother raising the gun. She could tell that she wouldn't need to actually point it at the kid to scare him.

"Jeremy. How've you been?" Dani tried to keep her voice kind. Jeremy's mother had been on Dani's supply team. He had a little sister who was the same age as Abigail and the two girls had often played together. Jeremy had taught Abigail how to play baseball. He was a good kid.

"I'm fine." His voice was soft and filled with fear.

"Jeremy, what were you told about your mission today?"

"Don't say nothin' you little shit!" Tripp lunged at the bars, trying to grab for Dani. She calmly raised her gun and shot his knee. He dropped to ground squalling like a wet cat. Dani turned back to Jeremy and walked over to his cell.

"Look, Jeremy, I know you're not in this alright? I just need you to tell me what you were told." He looked scared to death.

"M-m-m-martinez told me a-a-a-a-and Ch-ch-ch-chad to g-g-g-go with C-c-c-cash and Tr-tr-tripp." His voice was so shaky, she was having a hard time understanding him.

"Jeremy, is your mom still alive?" He nodded. "What did she say?" Danielle remembered how protective Rachel had been of her boy and her daughter. They were the only ones left after her husband and baby were killed by walkers before arriving at Woodbury. Jeremy took a deep breath.

"Mom didn't want me to go but Martinez said I had to, that the Governor said I had to and that he'd kill her and my sister if I didn't go. I don't want to do this. I just want my mom…and Cassie. I didn't want them to die." He started to cry. Dani reached through the bars and put her hand on his knee.

"Jeremy, do you know why you were sent here?" He looked up at her, his face streaked with tears.

"We were supposed to kill you." He looked over her shoulder at the men standing behind her, especially Rick, who started to walk towards the cell. Jeremy scrambled to the back of the cell, his eyes wide with fear.

"Seriously mister. I wasn't gonna do it! I don't even know how to use a gun. I couldn't kill anyone. I just didn't want them to kill my mom and little sister. Please, please don't kill me!" Rick stood next to Dani and she looked over at him.

"Rick, let him out. I know him. He's a good kid."

"Hell no." Glenn's voice behind her was forceful. She turned to him.

"Glenn he's a good kid. He didn't have a choice." Glenn shook his head.

"I don't care. He's not movin' in with us. No way." She frowned at him.

"So what do you suggest Glenn? Just leave him here? Set him loose outside the gates and let the walkers feed on him?" Glenn's jaw was set.

"There's another option." Dani looked from Glenn to Rick and then over at Tyreese and Daryl.

"What kill him? No, that's not an option! He's just a kid!"

"He was sent here to kill us Dani. We can't afford to be soft on this. Axel's dead. Oscar's dead. Your daughter's dead. How many more people have to die before we realize that we're in a goddamned war here?" He looked at Rick, Tyreese and Daryl. "C'mon, you have to agree with me on this one!" Tyreese frowned and shook his head.

"I'm sorry Glenn. I can't just kill this kid. You saw him down there. Kid was so scared he couldn't even remember to turn on his flashlight. And Dani knows him. You heard what he said. He didn't have a choice but to come here." Rick and Daryl exchanged a look. They'd been here before with Randall. They both remembered Dale's words about keeping their humanity and heard similar sentiments echoed in Tyreese's words now. Both knew they would do anything to keep the group safe, had to be ready to do anything to keep the group safe. Daryl knew he would follow Rick on this one. Rick was, after all, their leader, not Daryl. The silence was broken up by Tripp's hysterical whimper.

"Are y'all just gonna stand there and let me bleed to death or are you gonna fix my goddamned leg?" Daryl walked over to the cell and looked down at the pathetic little asshole. He tossed Tripp his bandana which Tripp used as a tourniquet.

"I suggest you shut up or we'll fix you permanent." Tripp glared at him and eyed the crossbow warily. He walked over to Rick and Dani. Tyreese and Glenn joined them. Daryl spoke first.

"Rick, we need to talk to everyone about this. We shouldn't make a decision right here right now." Tyreese agreed.

"I'll bring the doc down here with some food and water. He can check up on Mouth over there." He motioned towards Tripp's cell. Glenn shook his head.

"I don't like this." Rick put his hand on Glenn's shoulder.

"We'll deal with this. Right now, they're locked up and they're not goin' anywhere. Daryl's right. We shouldn't make this decision on our own." They turned and left the room. Tripp called after them.

"Hey! What about me?" Rick looked over his shoulder.

"Don't worry. We'll deal with you later."

**A/N I know some people might say "Whoa! No one had a problem with Dani just shooting Tripp in the knee but they're all righteous about what to do with the kid? Yeah, it seems odd but every single man in that room is probably surprised that Dani showed the restraint she did in not blowing his head off. I actually re-wrote that part a few times to include a scene where Dani kills him but I decided that the group needs him for a little bit longer and it would be way out of character for Dani to just kill someone who's totally helpless like that. **


	24. The Bed They Made

**A/N All characters belong to the writers and creators of The Walking Dead. Except those that arose from my own twisted imagination. **

**Thank you to all the new followers and thank you to everyone who has left reviews. Know that you are loved & the only reason I'm still fighting writers block to keep this going!**

**Chapter Twenty Four-The Bed They Made**

"So what are you going to do with them?" Sasha asked Rick after he finished telling everyone about Tripp and Jeremy.

"You should kill them both." Michonne's voice was cool and firm. Rick turned to look at her but her face was impassive. No emotion passed through her eyes. Like Glenn, she knew what needed to be done and didn't see the point in discussing it. Tyreese raised his hand.

"Now hold on. You're talking about executing a young kid. He's younger than Beth here and Ben." He looked around the room and noticed two people missing. "Where are Allen and Ben?" Beth looked worried.

"I thought he was in the tower with his dad. Allen called him out there after you all came and got Dani." Everyone was quiet for a moment before Tyreese turned and quickly walked outside. Tyreese called towards the tower.

"Hey Allen! You up there?" When he didn't receive a response, he opened the door and ran up the stairs. The control room was empty. He quickly scanned the grounds but couldn't see any movement save the numerous walkers in the field. Looking towards the front gate he say the chain and lock dangling and the gate slightly open. A few walkers were nearby but they hasn't yet noticed the chink in the prison's armor

"Tyreese!" He looked down and saw Rick, Daryl and Glenn in the yard. He motioned towards the gate.

"They're gone! Get the gate locked up before those walkers get in here!" Not having to be told twice, Rick and Glenn ran down the driveway to secure the gate. Tyreese heard Daryl climbing the stairs to join him in the tower.

"What do you see?" Daryl asked as he opened the door to the control room. Tyreese shook his head.

"Nothing. Absolutely nothing. Dammit I should have known he'd do some stupid shit like this. Rick talked to me about it. Oscar almost shot Allen the other day for talking about leaving the prison." Tyreese looked at Daryl, who didn't look entirely surprised. "You knew he'd do something like this, didn't you?" Daryl nodded.

"I figured he would. He wasn't one of us. And if his boy was dumb enough to follow, then they both deserve what they get." Daryl opened the door and motioned for Tyreese to follow.

"C'mon. We got bigger things to worry about."

* * *

Andrea knocked on Milton's door as she opened it. He jumped and turned to her, fear apparent in his eyes.

"You're back." He sounded surprised. "Did you see your friends?" Andrea nodded and walked into the room.

"I did. Where's Philip?" Milton flinched and turned his back to her, looking down again at the open book in front of him.

"Oh, you didn't see him?" Andrea caught the hint of a tremor in Milton's voice. He was hiding something.

"No, I didn't Milton. Where is he?" When he didn't answer she quickly walked across the room and forced him to turn and look at her. "Dammit Milton! What the hell is going on?" Milton tried to avoid her eyes but couldn't.

"He went to the prison. A group of them. They're heavily armed. They decided to attack them. The Governor wants the prison. He wants that group dead. And I think he plans on killing you too." Hearing her worst fears confirmed, Andrea stepped back.

"My god. What happened to him Milton? What made him change?" Milton pushed his glasses up his nose, his hands shaking.

"It was Penny. So long as he had Penny, he had a reason to live. He wanted her to get better. Now that she's gone, I think he's lost his mind." Andrea let that sink in and thought about Danielle and Abigail.

"So that's why he had you experiment on Abigail Robertson." She looked at Milton, her expression pained. "How could you do that? How could you look at that beautiful little girl and see a science experiment?" Milton cleared his throat.

"I had a theory about this virus and the effects on children. When the doctor said that Abigail had pneumonia, Phillip said that I had the opportunity to test that theory in order to try to find a cure. I thought the sacrifice of one would save everyone. I learned later that Phillip only wanted Abigail because she was the same age and blood type as Penny. He only wanted to save his daughter. He could have cared less about everyone else. I see that now and I know I was wrong to have been involved in that." Milton took Andrea's hand, a move that surprised them both.

"Will you please tell Miss Robertson that I'm sorry? I'd tell her myself but I'm not leaving Woodbury. And I know that you won't either if you don't get out of here. Phillip wants to kill you but I don't know what he'll do to you before he gets around to that. He wants Michonne and Danielle too. What he has planned for them…" His voice trailed off and he closed his eyes. "Cash and Tripp were with Phillip and I before we came to Woodbury. There was a small group of us then, a few families like there are now but there were others too. Young men who would take off and go on supply runs. We were heading for Fort Benning. One night I heard them talking after they got back about what they did to these two girls in front of their father. They left almost every night, Cash, Tripp, Dave, Tony and Randall," Andrea's eyes widened "and I know they were doing more than just bringing back food. I know Phillip knew this too. He saw it as boys being boys but told them to keep quiet about it for the rest of the group. One night, only Cash and Tripp came back. They said they got ambushed by a group in a bar, got attacked by biters and took off.". Andrea could barely breathe. Milton was talking about Randall. Randall had been with Phillip, Cash and Tripp before Woodbury. Cash and Tripp had been the ones to fire on Rick, Glenn and Hershel at the bar. Daryl had been vague in saying what he had learned from his interrogation of Randall, only saying that the "men would be dead and the women would wish they were" if Randall's group arrived on the farm. Now she understood. If Shane had not killed Randall, the group could have been in a position where they would have had the option of joining the Governor or face the consequences. Knowing how Rick, Daryl and Shane were, they never would have joined anyone like that and it would have been bloody.

"Milton, when did they leave? I didn't see anyone on the road when I left this morning." Milton shook his head.

"I don't know. They could be back at any moment though. You have to get out of here Andrea. He will kill you if you stay." Andrea nodded and walked back to the door. Just as she was about to leave, she turned back to Milton.

"Come with me." Milton looked up and shook his head.

"I don't belong there Andrea. I've made my bed here. Now I have to lie in it." He met her eyes one time and smiled quickly before looking back at his books. Andrea turned and hurried quickly for the wall.

* * *

Hershel and Tyreese returned to the cellblock after checking on the prisoners. Hershel recommended that, if Tripp were to live, they would have to amputate is leg. Sitting with Dani on the stairs, Daryl snorted back laughter.

"I've got a dull ax you can use." Hershel frowned.

"I don't know what you have planned but that boy will die if we don't take that leg. Now if that's what you're doing, then fine but you have to make a decision real quick before it's too late for me to do anything." Michonne shook her head.

"We need to just send them out there. Give them some food if it makes you feel better but get them out of here. Let the walkers decide who lives and who dies." When her statement was greeted with silence, she turned to walk back to the other cellblock. "I'll take care of this." Rick grabbed her arm to stop her and she fixed him with an icy stare.

"What's wrong Rick?" Her voice was low and dripping with sarcasm. "I thought you were the leader. Can't make decisions on your own now? Or are you just gonna stand there and wait until he dies of natural causes so you can avoid any guilt? You know the world we're in now. That man in there, he would have killed us, killed your son, killed your baby girl." She turned to make sure that Dani wasn't close by and leaned in to Rick, lowering her voice to ensure it didn't carry.

"I saw what they did to Danielle that night. She doesn't remember all of it, I'm sure because if she did, there's no way she'd be able to let Daryl touch her this soon no matter how she felt about him. I saw her in that room, I know what they did to her and I'll tell you this: she was not the first woman or girl that they did this to. I know given the chance, they would do any one of us women here the same way. So you keep that in your mind while you wrestle with your conscience." She backed up, glanced again at Danielle and caught Daryl's eye. He was angry, not at her but at what she said. How he had heard her while Danielle obviously hadn't, she didn't know. He stood, ignored Dani's questions and practically ran towards Cellblock D.

"Daryl!" He didn't turn at Rick's call and heard at least two people running behind him. When he got to Cellblock D, he walked right up to Tripp's cell and stared down at him. Tripp was sitting on the blood stained floor. He was sweating, his breathing ragged but he still managed to glare at Daryl in defiance.

"What's goin' on Hoss? Miss me already?" Tripp started to laugh at his own joke but it trailed off into a hacking cough. He sat back up and wiped his mouth. Daryl continued to stare down at him.

"I came in here to shoot you." Tripp's eyes widened in fear. "But I decided that would be to easy for you, given what you are." Rick and Tyreese walked into the room at that moment but Daryl didn't turn around. Rick was shocked at how cold Daryl's voice was as he handed down Tripp's fate.

"Instead, we're gonna let you sit here. Let that leg rot. Let that infection move through your body and eat you alive. Let you sit right here when the fever hits, knowing that no one is comin' to help you. Leave you here helpless and alone, knowing that no one can hear you screamin' as you die slow." Daryl squatted in front of the cell and stared Tripp down. "I'm gonna do to you what you did to Danielle. Leave you alone, in the dark, scared, hurtin' bad, and prayin' for someone to do somethin' to make it stop." Daryl paused and allowed his words to sink in, taking pleasure in watching the asshole squirm. "And when you've turned and you wake up hungry with no food nearby, then I'll come in here and put a bullet in your head. Because then, you'll just be another walker and there won't be no arguments about puttin' you down." Daryl stood and walked to Jeremy's cell. He unlocked the door and grabbed the kid, dragging him out of the cell. Leading him by the arm he pulled Jeremy out of the room and started back towards Cellblock C.

"Don't you try nothin', understand?" Jeremy nodded quickly and allowed himself to be dragged down the hallway.

After Daryl left, Tripp stared at both Rick and Tyreese.

"C'mon man, you can't leave me to die like this. Please." He grabbed the bars and pulled himself closer to the door. "C'mon please. Don't let me die this way. I'll tell her I'm sorry. Just…" His voice trailed off and tears spilled over onto his cheeks as Tripp realized that neither men had made a move to help him. "Please, please, please. Don't let me die this way." Rick and Tyreese turned and left the room and ignored the screams that finally faded when they returned to Cellblock C.


	25. Broken Run

**A/N All characters belong to the writers and creators of The Walking Dead. Except those that arose from my own twisted imagination. **

**Chapter Twenty Five-Broken Run**

Andrea started running the moment her feet hit the ground on the other side of the wall and didn't look back until she was far enough away that she was hidden by the other buildings and trees. She had to circle around the buildings to get the road that would lead her to the prison. From her vantage point, she could just see the wall and Martinez standing guard. She heard the rumble of truck engines and knew that Phillip had returned. That got her running again. Her lungs burned and her heart was pounding but she dared not stop. She knew that Phillip would find out quickly that she had not only returned but had escaped.

Andrea had made it about five miles when she had to cut through the woods to avoid a small herd of about fifteen walkers. She hadn't seen this many together in a long time, with the exception of her brief time at the prison. As she made her way through the trees, careful to not make any sound that might attract walkers, she cursed herself for just running and not at least grabbing additional ammo or even water. Just as she removed her gun from her holster to check her ammo, she froze. In the distance, the roar of a truck was heading towards her on the road. She was on a slight hill so she ducked down behind a fallen tree and watched the road as the roar drew closer. Her heart froze as she watched Phillip's truck fly past her. He was following her and that fact scared her to death. If he flew out of Woodbury the moment he learned that she was gone, she knew he meant to kill her. She quickly turned and began running through the trees, forgetting for a moment that every heavy footstep would probably attract any of the dozens of walkers that were within hearing range. She made it to a clearing and stopped. In front of her was a large open field with no cover for at least a half a mile, save the tall dried grass. She would have no place to hide once she left the safety of the trees. She also wasn't sure where exactly she was, only that she was heading due east. She closed her eyes.

"C'mon bitch grow a pair and get moving." She hissed to herself and ran. About half way across the field, she stepped in a gopher hole and fell hard to the ground, hearing a sickening crack in her right ankle. Biting her lip and grimacing in pain, she rolled over onto her back and checked her injuries. Hands were scraped up but nothing broken. She tasted blood and assumed she must have bitten her tongue. Running it across her teeth, Andrea determined that she had not bitten it off and continued to check herself. She saved her right leg for last because she knew it was bad. She could feel the pulse pounding in her ankle and foot and her shoe was already painfully tight. Holding back a scream she pushed her sock down and saw that her ankle was severely swollen. Touching it brought a new round of pain and she fought the urge to scream. Knowing that she couldn't very well take care of herself in the open, she stood, put the majority of her weight on her left leg and hobbled as best she could, her vision blurred by tears of pain. She stopped once when she thought she heard the truck engine but decided that it was only her imagination. She made to the other side of the field and kept going, trying not to think about the fact that if she ran into another herd of walkers or even Phillip with a broken ankle she was dead.

* * *

Milton had never really been a drinking man but after Andrea left his lab he found a bottle of brandy that was stashed in his cabinet. He poured a glass, turned on the record player and allowed the sounds of the Italian tenor fill his brain. He closed his eyes, took a sip and waited. The brandy burned a track to his stomach and he quickly took another sip. Phillip would be back soon and Milton would be forced to tell him about Andrea. He would try to refuse to tell Philip her destination but he knew he would eventually be forced to tell. He had never been very good at lying.

He opened his eyes at the sound of voices outside his door. His door slammed open and Philip and Martinez walked on. Milton tried to hide his fear but soon realized that his hand was shaking.

"Where is she?" Philip's voice was cold and Milton raised his glass to his lips, hoping to delay the inevitable. Philip's face twisted on rage as he slapped the glass from Milton's hand, grabbed Milton and threw him against the wall, sending a shelf of books crashing down on top of him. Before Milton could catch his breath, Phillip grabbed him and tossed him against the lab table. Glass cut into Milton's hands as he struggled to get to his feet. He had managed to get to his knees when Phillip kicked him square in the chest. Milton felt his ribs crack and coughed hard, pain drilling straight through to his spine. He spit blood onto the floor and struggled to focus. His glasses were gone and he could no longer see. Even if he somehow got a chance to run, it would be in vain. Phillip grabbed Milton again and hauled him to his feet. He slammed Milton against the wall.

"Where is she?". When Milton didn't answer, Phillip punched him repeatedly in the face. Dazed, Milton tried to keep consciousness. Philip leaned in, his face inches from Milton.

"Where is she?" Philip's voice was cold.

"Gone." Milton could barely force his mouth and tongue to work properly to form that one word answer. Phillip punched him again.

"I know she's gone dammit! Where is she going?" Milton didn't respond and his head rolled to one side. Phillip growled and grabbed Milton's face in one hand, slamming his head again the wall. He leaned in close again.

"I trusted you, gave you shelter, saved your ass from the biters and you betrayed me." Milton focused his eyes for a moment and held his head steady.

"You betrayed us all a long time ago Phillip."

His mouth twisted with rage, Phillip quickly snapped Milton's neck. As he left the room, he paused next to a stunned Martinez. Phillip motioned towards the body that was crumpled on the floor.

"Take care of that. I'm going after Andrea."

* * *

Andrea turned at the sound of the walker's growl. She thrust the broken end of a stick through the walker's eye and it went down. Andrea hobbled faster. She could see at least five more walkers, and two had definitely noticed her. She picked up a large rock and braced herself against a tree, waiting for the first one to get close. It's decayed hands grabbed for her jacket and she swung the rock upwards with both hands, catching the walker in the jaw and knocking it to the ground. Straddling the walker, Andrea brought the rock down again and again, bashing it's skull. The other walker ambled closer. Andrea tried to stand but couldn't place any weight on her right foot. Andrea tried to control her fear and revulsion and waited for the walker to lean down over her, reaching it's gnarled fingers for her, jaws snapping. She swung the rock again, catching the walker on the side of the head and quickly climbing over it to smash it's skull. This one must have been older than the last one because it's head broke open like a rotten watermelon. Thinking quickly, Andrea dipped both hands into the bloody mess that had been it's face and smeared the mess over her clothes. She covered herself with as much of the foul blood and brain matter as she could, then crawled back to the other walker and smashed the rock into it's face again. She rubbed the blood over her pants, over her chest and as best she could across her back. Sufficiently covered now, she forced herself to her feet and began walking again in the direction of the prison. Andrea passed two walkers that didn't even give her a second glance. She smiled slightly to herself. She just might make it.

* * *

Tyreese and Daryl stood watch in the tower. Tyreese hadn't spoken to Daryl since the incident with Tripp. When they returned to the cell block with Jeremy, Daryl had walked him up to the second tier and locked him in the end cell. Though Dani protested, Daryl was not going to take any chances and both Rick and Tyreese had agreed.

"It'll just be for a couple of days," Rick assured her. Daryl frowned.

"Unless he causes any problems. Then I'll feed him to his buddy back there.". Jeremy shook his head.

"I promise. I won't do anything I swear!" Daryl walked back in front of his cell and stared the kid down.

"You just keep quiet and do what we tell you, got it?" Jeremy nodded and sat on the bunk. Daryl turned and headed down the stairs, pausing by Glenn.

"Keep an eye on him alright?". Glenn nodded and Daryl had walked outside to stand watch in the tower.

Tyreese glanced over at Daryl, who looked tense. He was shifting slightly back and forth on his feet, his jaw was clenched and his fists balled up like he was ready for a fight. His eyes, however, didn't have the murderous rage they did when he had confronted Tripp. Tyreese was positive that the redneck looked on the verge of tears.

"Hey man, you ok?" Daryl took a deep breath and shook his head. He raised one hand to his mouth and began chewing on the knuckle of his thumb. Tyreese was sure that Daryl wasn't even aware he was doing it.

"I can't stop thinking about what they did to her. Michonne didn't tell Rick exactly but it must have been bad. I know Dani has nightmares but she doesn't remember having them in the morning." He turned his back to Tyreese and ran both hands through his hair. Tyreese shifted uncomfortably and didn't respond. He turned his attention back on the surrounding fields, watching the walkers pour out of the woods.

"Daryl check it out," Tyreese pointed towards the herd. "Those fools from Woodbury would be stupid to try anything with that group down there." Daryl watched the herd hit the outer fence and nodded.

"Never thought I'd ever say I was glad to see a bunch of walkers." Tyreese chuckled.

"I know what you mean. Probably wouldn't be such a bad thing to let them stay by the fence for now and not take them out. It's not like we can go out on a run or anything until this mess is taken care of, you know?" Daryl nodded.

"Our own guard dogs. I like that. We'll just have to watch 'em, keep 'em spread out so they don't gang up in one spot and put too much pressure on the fence." Tyreese agreed.

"Think we should go down and tell the others?" Daryl did one last scan of the woods. Seeing no movement other than walkers, he turned to the door.

"C'mon. We should get back inside. We should stay out of here as much as possible anyway. You know what Danielle and Andrea said about the weapons at that place. They might not know how to use them but that won't stop them from tryin'." The two men walked down the stairs and back into the cellblock just as Andrea finally arrived at the edge of the woods. Her ankle was killing her and she could see the walkers surrounding the place. No one was outside in the prison yard. Her heart began pounding as she realized that she might have made the journey in vain.

She was just starting to give up hope when she saw Rick and Glenn walk quickly towards the fence. They began yelling at the walkers, trying to spread them out along the perimeter. Andrea saw an opportunity and began limping towards the fence. She was aware that she looked like a walker and she hoped she smelled enough like one to keep the herd at bay. She hadn't taken three steps when a hand clapped over her mouth and arms pulled her back into the woods.

"Andrea," Phillip's voice was cold. "Don't you think it's rude to leave without saying goodbye?" Andrea tried to fight him but he dragged her back to his truck. She couldn't believe she hadn't heard him behind her. He opened the door, threw her in the cab and grabbed her broken ankle, twisting it hard. She screamed in pain. As she blacked out, Phillip leaned over her, his lips inches from her ear.

"We're just getting started Andrea. And I promise you one Andrea: you'll wish you were dead when I get done with you."


End file.
